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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28427754">Cowboy Like Me</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DelicateCornelia/pseuds/DelicateCornelia'>DelicateCornelia</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Actor RPF, Real Person Fiction</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Actors, Age Difference, Album: evermore (Taylor Swift), Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst and Humor, Based on a Taylor Swift Song, Drama &amp; Romance, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff and Humor, Heartbreak, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, Implied/Referenced Cheating, New Year's Eve, Older Man/Younger Woman, Past Relationship(s), References to Drugs, Romance, Song: cowboy like me (Taylor Swift)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 19:33:29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>73,580</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28427754</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DelicateCornelia/pseuds/DelicateCornelia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Summer McGrath is a former Disney Channel star, longing to be known as something of a serious actor. After finding out her boyfriend of three years cheated on her with his co-star, Summer moves back to the states in hopes of a new start. In the midst of a break from acting and dating, she returns to LA and drops in on a New Years Eve party of a friend. Summer meets the guy of her dreams and subsequently goes home with him while quickly falling for him more and more. </p><p>The only downside is that he's significantly older than herself. </p><p>An age difference that practically spells trouble.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Chris Evans (Actor)/Original Female Character(s), Pedro Pascal/Original Female Character(s), Tom Holland/Original Female Character(s)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>74</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>118</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>You had some tricks up your sleeve</p><p>Takes one to know one.</p><p>You're a cowboy like me. </p><p>Perched in the dark,</p><p>Telling all the rich folks anything they want to hear.</p><p>Like it could be love.</p><p>I could be the way forward. </p><p>Only if they pay for it. </p><p>-Taylor Swift(Cowboy Like Me)</p>
    </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So this story is an outcome of me listening to Evermore nonstop. It's based off a few songs off the album. Especially 'Cowboy Like Me' but also 'Happiness', 'Gold Rush', and 'Long Story Short'. </p><p>Just a warning that there's a huge age gap in this story. I kind of became curious about big age gaps after the whole Florence Pugh and Zach Braff thing so the characters intentionally have a huge age gap because I was curious about writing such a huge age gap. Not because I didn't want to write a female character closer in age to Pedro. I just wanted to write a story that explored a relationship with a huge age gap. I've written age gap stories before but this is the biggest. If you don't like age gaps then definitely don't read this. It's a significant one.</p><p>This also isn't a Tom Holland bashing fic. I'm sure Tom would never do the things the Tom does in this story but I just wanted a famous ex that was around Summer's age and Tom made sense.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“I slept with someone,” Tom said as he washed the dishes. Summer almost thought she misheard him. She turned back to look at him.</p><p>“Did you say something?” She asked him and he just stared at her.</p><p>“I slept with someone else,” Tom told her seriously and Summer stared back at him. She didn’t know how to register his words in her mind. Summer just sat there processing his words.</p><p>At first, she didn’t believe him.</p><p>Summer thought it must’ve been some kind of joke because Tom would never cheat on her. No, he was one of the good ones. It was why she hadn’t wanted to date him in the first place. Summer always thought she would ruin him and that had deterred her from dating him originally. Tom wasn’t like the other guys she dated. He was sweet, attentive, caring, and he adored her more than anything.</p><p>He was perfect, wasn’t he?</p><p>“What do you mean?” She asked hesitantly, almost afraid to hear the answer. Tom swallowed hard, giving her a guilty look but it was different from his usual puppy dog look. He looked as though he actually did something wrong.</p><p>“In Cleveland, Ciara and I got to talking one night and we…sort of had sex,” Tom admitted and Summer stared at him blankly.</p><p>“Will did you or didn’t you?”</p><p>“Excuse me?” Tom questioned, looking at her incredulously as he tried to read the expression on her face. He didn’t understand what she was thinking and he rarely ever did. Summer was like a never ending puzzle and that used to be something he loved about her. Now he just felt as though he never completely broke down her walls. Even after dating for three years now.</p><p>“You said sort of? You either had sex with her or you didn’t,” Summer said in a cold voice. Tom sighed heavily and nodded.</p><p>“Fine. We had sex,” Tom told her and Summer did a sharp intake of breath as she started draining the kitchen sink. Tom had only been back home from filming <em>Cherry</em> for a few days now. It was just a brief break before they’d return next week to film the rest of the movie.</p><p>“You’ve been back a few days now. Were you ever going to tell me or were you going to fuck me as much as you could before you dropped the bomb?” Summer asked sarcastically as she felt emotion thick in her throat. Her heart was racing in her chest and she felt like breaking every single dish in the cabinet on the floor. Tom scoffed.</p><p>“Jesus, Summer,” He said but Summer had a point. She had waited upstairs in new lingerie she especially picked for him, waiting to welcome home. They had sex nonstop since he got back which they always did whenever one of them was away filming for so long.</p><p>“Answer the damn question, Tom,” Summer demanded and Tom felt a chill from how cold her eyes had gone. Summer had gotten mad at him numerous times in the past but she had never been this quiet before.</p><p>“If I’m being honest then no. I wasn’t going to tell you,” Tom admitted and Summer nodded. He ran a hand over his face. “I made a really stupid mistake and I didn’t want to ruin what we had because of it but I can’t do this. I can’t lie to you.”</p><p>“Why did you do it?” Summer asked him quietly. Tom shrugged.</p><p>“I don’t know. I had a drink or two, we had a really honest conversation, and I’d been away from home for a while,” Tom tried to answer honestly. “If you want to hear that she’s prettier or better then you’re not going to hear that because she’s not. She was just different…emotionally available.”</p><p>“And I’m not emotionally available?” Summer questioned and her boyfriend shook his head.</p><p>“No, you’re not,” Tom told her honestly. “I never know what you’re thinking and I can never figure you out. I used to like the mystery of it but now I never know how you’re going to react to something. You don’t tell me things…you think I don’t know but I’m not stupid. I know you still hide things from me because you have trust issues.”</p><p>“Well, maybe I’m right to have trust issues,” Summer quipped and Tom scoffed.</p><p>“See? That’s exactly what I mean. You never tell me how you feel. You always deflect and answer everything with some sarcastic remark,” Tom told her and Summer felt angry. Angry because he was mad at her like she was the one who fucked someone else. Not him. “You never want to talk about our problems.”</p><p>“So it’s my fault you decided to fuck your co-star?” Summer retorted, leaning against the counter as she stared at him coldly but underneath she felt her heart breaking. Summer adored Tom. He was the first guy she actually fell in love with. She truly believed that he was the one.</p><p>Everything was right with Tom.</p><p>He treated her differently than all the other guys she went out with before. Summer wasn’t an object to him. She was his best friend and he treated her like such. They had all their little inside jokes and understood each other to a certain extent. Summer had fallen for him dumbly initially because of his innocence. He was so different than all the other guys in Hollywood. Humble, kind, considerate, and zero ego.</p><p>This couldn’t be happening.</p><p>Summer woke up this morning, basking in the feeling of being in Tom’s arms again after being apart from him for so long. Now she was faced with a completely different situation.</p><p>“Of course that’s not what I’m saying,” Tom said in an annoyed tone. “Just…what the fuck? You’re not even angry right now. You’re not yelling or anything. I just told you that I ruined everything we built for the past fucking three years and you’re acting like it’s annoying…like an inconvenience.”</p><p>“Of course I’m fucking angry, you motherfucking asshole!” Summer snapped, making Tom flinch in surprise. “I gave you fucking everything. I moved to another country for you. You think I fucking wanted to move to London? Away from my family? No! But I did it for you.”</p><p>Summer didn’t stop there either.</p><p>“You go to the pub every night with your “mates” when I wish you would spend it here with me because we hardly spend any time together,” Summer told him angrily. “I’ve sat through I don’t know how many golf tournaments you’ve done. Do you know how fucking boring golf is?!”</p><p>“And what I’m the most pissed off about is that I told you I didn’t want to go out with you,” Summer finally said, tears welling up in her eyes. “I told you this thing between us was a bad idea and it would only end badly which puts us in a bad position because you work with my sister and Chris. I told you all this but you do that thing you do with your Bambi eyes, your accent, and the way you hold my hands. You promised me that we would be alright and I fucking fell for it.”</p><p>“Why are you talking like that?” Tom asked fearfully. “Why are you talking like it’s over?”</p><p>“Isn’t it? Isn’t that what you want?” Summer questioned. “Isn’t that why you fucked some other girl?”</p><p>“No, it’s not,” Tom said before shaking his head. “Look, I just got scared. We had that talk before I left for Cleveland and you were talking about starting a family-“</p><p>“I meant in a year or two,” Summer told him, frustrated by the way he was putting this all on her. She never told him to cheat on her. “I didn’t mean put a baby inside me right now. Like, I meant when we were in a better place and after we got married. That could’ve taken five years for all I knew.”</p><p>“But I feel like I’m just starting to get roles outside Marvel and having a kid on top of that will just be too overwhelming. When I have kids, I want to be present for them,” Tom told her honestly. “It’s different for you.”</p><p>“How is it different for me?” Summer questioned in disbelief.</p><p>“Because you’re you. You’ve had a career for the past ten years,” Tom threw back in her face. “You might feel ready to have kids because your career is solid but mine’s just starting.”</p><p>“That’s what this is,” Summer said in disbelief. “You feel emasculated by my success.”</p><p>“What? No!” Tom said in response. “I just feel like I’m not ready to have kids. Not for maybe ten years or something.”</p><p>“I told you years ago that I wanted to have kids young. That I didn’t want to wait until I was in my thirties or forties like my parents,” Summer said angrily. “I told you that when we were just friends. You knew that it was what I wanted.”</p><p>“I thought you would change your mind or something,” Tom said quietly and Summer shook her head in disbelief.</p><p>“This life we live is stupid. All this Hollywood bullshit. All the parties and people sucking up to you. I just want something bigger than that,” Summer told him, tears falling from her eyes. “Is it so wrong to want kids at my age? To have something outside all the movies and the glamour. To want to build something with someone I love.”</p><p>“No, it’s not wrong but my point is that I don’t feel ready to be a father or to get married,” Tom told her and Summer felt like her heart was ripping in two. “Summer, you’re the second girlfriend I’ve ever had. I don’t have much experience outside that and we’re both so young-“</p><p>“Wait a second,” Summer interrupted him, feeling more anger come over her. “This isn’t just about you not being ready to be a father. This is about you wanting to fuck other women.”</p><p>“That’s not what I said,” Tom argued and Summer scoffed.</p><p>“Look at you, Holland. You get a bit of fame and suddenly I’m not good enough for you anymore. You want to see what else the world has to offer you,” Summer said angrily. “Suddenly a bunch of gorgeous women are paying attention to you and you’re wondering what it would be like to be neck deep in super model pussy.”</p><p>“Well, you know that I’ve had a lot of offers too,” Summer said bitterly. She felt betrayed that it was so easy for Tom to sleep with some other girl when she had been nothing but devoted to him. “Guys come up to me all the time but I always say no because I had you. I love you and would never betray you like that because I respect you too much.”</p><p>“Summer, I just think we’re both at different places in our lives,” Tom told her, looking sad as he looked at her. “I need some time to find myself and you want to get serious. If you just gave me some time then we can-“</p><p>“You think that I’m going to wait around for you like a fucking dog?!” Summer spat and Tom flinched. “That I’m just going to wait around while you fuck a bunch of co-stars and models?”</p><p>“No, I’m saying that we can both see other people for now and then we can make a decision about-“ He tried to say again and Summer grew cold.</p><p>“I didn’t need to fuck some other guy to know that I love you and that it’s you who I wanted to be with,” Summer told him in a cold tone. “But I respect myself too much to wait around for you to make up your fucking mind. Any chance of us sticking together went away the night you fucked your co-star. I’m not taking you back.”</p><p>“Summer, love-“ Tom pleaded with her and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“I’m fucking done, Tom,” Summer told him and the brown eyed boy was suddenly scared of the fact that he might’ve lost Summer forever. Summer turned away from him. “I’m going to go find a hotel tonight and then tomorrow I’m going to pack up my shit. I would hope you’d still give enough shit about me to leave the apartment to give me the peace and space to do that.”</p><p>“Summer, you don’t have to leave the apartment. It’s our apartment,” Tom tried to tell her and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“Not anymore,” She deadpanned and Tom swallowed hard, trying to mend whatever he had broken. Now that the threat of her actually leaving was on the table, Tom knew he had done something really bad. Something unforgivable.</p><p>“Summer, you’re making a rash decision. Let’s talk about this more. You don’t have to pack anything up,” Tom tried to tell her and Summer looked at him incredulously.</p><p>“Do you know what you fucking want?!” Summer asked in exasperation. “First, you say that you want to see other people and you don’t want to take the next step. Now you don’t want me to leave.”</p><p>“I’m sorry, Summer, I just…” He trailed off, unable to think of any words to say. Summer raised her eyebrows.</p><p>“What?” She snapped and he fell silent. Summer rolled her eyes before nodding.</p><p>“That’s what I thought,” She said as she walked out of the kitchen, heading for the door of the apartment. She wasn’t even going to pack anything for the night. Summer couldn’t stay there. Not for another fucking moment.</p><p>“Summer!” Tom tried to call her but Summer ignored him. She didn’t even have the energy to say goodbye.</p><p>Summer stepped out into the London rain and could finally admit she hated it after a long three years. It was strange to think it felt liberating.</p><p>Only for a second.</p><p>Then she cried for a full week.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter One</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>In the aftermath of Summer's break-up with Tom, she goes back to the states to live her sister and brother-in-law while contemplating her future.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Summer and Tom had been broken up for two months.</p><p>Two months and the world seemed to be in denial about it. Summer McGrath and Tom Holland were finished. Everyone’s favorite celebrity couple was over and no one wanted to believe it, thinking that Summer and Tom would get back together. Summer almost wanted to do one of those twitter rants where she reminded everyone that her life was her own but she deleted all her social media accounts years ago after leaving Disney Channel for good. Life wasn’t actually happily ever after like Hollywood made you believe.</p><p>Summer and Tom’s friends were shocked to say the least.</p><p>Their romance started on the set of <em>Captain America: Civil War</em> which her sister and brother-in-law had been starring in at the time. It was actually Chris who’d introduced Summer to Tom and so everyone thought the young couple’s romance was adorable. When Summer and Tom’s representatives came out about the split, Summer received a flood of concerned texts from her friends questioning the split. Summer had already informed her family since she knew it would be headline news when it came out.</p><p>“Miss McGrath and Mr. Holland have decided to amicably split. A difficult decision they both made and they have the full support of their family and friends,” Summer’s publicist wrote since they both knew that fans would be concerned if Summer and Tom’s split meant there would be drama at Marvel Studios. Tom, after all, worked alongside Summer’s brother-in-law Chris Evans as well as her sister Natalie McGrath who famously played Natasha Romanoff in the MCU.</p><p>It was how she met Tom. She’d been visiting the set when Robert Downey Jr. had introduced her to him.  </p><p>Summer just prayed that in the event that Chris or her sister had to work with Tom again, everyone would’ve moved on by then. She didn’t want there to be any awkwardness or resentment between her family members and Tom. The situation was already fucked up enough.</p><p>Summer was staying with Natalie and Chris in New York after the break-up to spend more time with her nephew and niece. Living in London for three years hadn’t really allowed her to spend much time with them so if there was one silver lining in this break-up then it was definitely that.</p><p>“Alex,” Summer said warningly as her nephew tried to suck on her finger. He knew it grossed her out. “That’s a nasty little habit you got there.”</p><p>It was a long story of how Alexander came to be.</p><p>Well, maybe not.</p><p>Her older sister Natalie was a famous actress as well. Long before Summer even thought of pursuing acting. Natalie met Chris on the set of <em>Avengers</em> and they’d been together ever since, even working on a bunch of Marvel films together. They had Alex a few years ago and had Summer’s niece Olivia two years ago.</p><p>They then got married three years ago after spending forever planning the wedding. To Summer, they were the perfect couple although she was sure they had their moments like most couples. Summer always yearned to have what they had.  </p><p>“No, I don’t,” The adorable boy told his aunt as he sat on her lap while they watched cartoons.</p><p>“You totally do. You’re disgusting,” Summer told him as she ruffled his brown hair. It was funny how much of a Chris look alike he was. “You probably get it from your dad’s side of the family. Our side of the family are polite and respectable people. We wouldn’t dare suck people’s fingers…you know unless a significant other was into that or something. Wait…you’re five. Forget what I just said.”</p><p>Summer realized that she still hadn’t gotten quite used to there being kids in the family. She was used to being the kid in her family for the longest time so being around kids was still a new concept. It was true since Summer and her sister were about eleven years apart in age. Summer was the unplanned surprise in their parents’ life. It was probably why they didn’t retire until Summer started working in the industry and they moved to California from New Mexico which was where Summer was originally from.</p><p>“Aunt Summer,” The little boy said, breaking her out of her thoughts. She looked down at him as Alexander’s eyes stared up at her. “Where’s Uncle Tom? He promised me a present last time.”</p><p>Summer swallowed hard.</p><p>No one had really explained to her nephew why she was there yet Tom wasn’t. Usually when Summer visited her sister and Chris along with their kids, Tom was usually with her. Alex and Olivia had gotten used to their Uncle Tom and adored him. Summer always loved watching the two of them together because she always got a glimpse of what Tom would look like as a father.</p><p>“Uncle Tom’s not here, Alex,” Summer said quietly and the boy watched as a sad look came over his aunt’s face. “</p><p>“Where is he?” Alex asked curiously and Summer sighed before responding.</p><p>“Uncle Tom is in London,” Summer informed her nephew who didn’t look any less confused by her statement. “And I moved back here because we decided to part ways.”</p><p>“What?” Alex questioned and Summer didn’t know how to explain this to someone as small as Alex. It was difficult. This was a very adult issue and it must’ve seemed so maddening to someone Alex’s age.</p><p>“Sometimes people are together and then one day they decide they don’t love each other anymore,” Summer tried to explain to the small boy. “Or maybe they still love each other but being together is too hard so they grow apart which is what happened to your Uncle Tom and I.”</p><p>“You and Uncle Tom don’t love each other anymore?” Alex asked with tears in his eyes and Summer held him close, forcing herself not to also cry. She was the grown-up here so she had to be strong.</p><p>“No, I love your Uncle Tom very much. I always will,” Summer told him sincerely which was probably more sincere than she was with anyone else who asked her about Tom. “But adults are complicated, kid. Stupid adult problems get in the way and it’s probably too silly for someone as smart as you to understand.”</p><p>“Is Uncle Tom never coming back?” Alex asked her and Summer took a deep breath before answering.</p><p>“Probably not,” Summer admitted, caressing a strand of his hair. “But we’ll be okay. At least, this means I’m moving back stateside so you’ll be seeing a lot more of me. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Me coming over more?”</p><p>“Yes,” Alex said quietly, still looking sad about maybe never seeing Uncle Tom again. Summer kissed his forehead and held him closer.</p><p>“This will be fun,” Summer told him with a warm smile on her face. “You get me all to yourself. Just you and me, kid. Maybe I’ll take you and Olivia out for some frozen yogurt later. I’ll have to ask your parents first but I’m pretty sure they’ll be okay with it.”</p><p>“I want birthday cake flavor!” Alex said excitedly and Summer laughed. At the mention of frozen yogurt, her nephew seemed to forget everything about his Uncle Tom. Summer was glad it was that easy although she never thought how hard it would be on Alex. Tom had been around since Alex was maybe two or three. To Alex, Tom was his beloved Uncle who played and watched cartoons with him all day.</p><p>Summer realized that it was going to be tough for Alex to get over that.</p><p>Summer then came to the stunning realization that she never got to say goodbye to Tom’s family either. His parents who had been so kind to her and treated her like the daughter they never had. Tom’s brothers who looked at Summer as their sister-in-law even though Summer and Tom weren’t married. Then there was all of Tom’s friends who became her friends in turn. She would miss all the pub quiz nights and goofing around with the guys whenever they came over. They never treated her like their best friend’s girlfriend either. They treated her like a friend.</p><p>Suddenly it wasn’t just losing Tom but it was losing everything else too.</p><p>Summer wasn’t so sure how to feel about it yet.</p>
<hr/><p>“So you have any projects lined up?” Natalie asked her sister as they ate dinner. Chris was going to town on his pasta and Summer had just taken a sip of wine. Alex and Olivia had been put to bed an hour ago so it was the adults’ time to catch up with each other.</p><p>“Not really. I mean, I finished filming <em>Queen’s Gambit</em> a little bit ago,” Summer told her sister. “I just finished the press tours for <em>American Horror Story</em> and <em>Maleficent</em>. I don’t really have anything lined up currently but I think I’m just going to take a break. Maybe do some traveling. I haven’t really had a break since I started <em>Shake it Up</em> which was, like, nine years ago.”</p><p>“I think that’s a good thing. You work way too much, Summer. Maybe even a little too much. You should definitely take some time off and relax,” Natalie told her but Summer shrugged. She wasn’t that into arguing with her sister about that. Both Natalie as well as their mother had tried to get her to take a break for so long. Summer always put it off because new projects kept getting passed along to her and she found it hard to say no. However, this seemed like just as good of a time as any to finally take a much needed break.</p><p>“I think it’s a good idea too. I’ve never known you to spend more than a couple weeks at home before you’re going off to film something else,” Chris said in agreement with Natalie. Summer knew they both had a point. “You should go backpacking or whatever kids your age do.”</p><p>“I’m twenty-three,” Summer reminded him. “I thought the whole backpacking thing was an in-between high school and college thing.”</p><p>“Yeah, well, you were homeschooled and never went to college. You’re late to the game but late is better than never,” Chris told her and Natalie nodded. Summer was left to mull this over to herself.</p><p>“Chris’s right. Even I did a little traveling in between film shoots,” Natalie told her from behind her glass of wine before pausing to take a sip. “You should go to South America. Somewhere you’ve never been before. I hear Peru’s really great.”</p><p>“I’ll look into it. I’d like to get some traveling in before whenever I go back on set. It might be another decade before I decide to take a break again,” Summer said, actually listening to her sister and brother-in-law much to their surprise. Summer never listened. She always did what she wanted and ignored everyone else’s advice. Including Summer and Natalie’s parents’ advice much to their father’s constant annoyance.</p><p>If Natalie was the obedient and rule follower McGrath sister then Summer was the trouble-maker and more independent McGrath sister. She always used to challenge their father’s rules constantly and danced to the beat of her own drum. Something that Summer always got away with, unlike when Natalie was her age, because their parents were just too old, by the time Summer got into those teenage years, to care. Natalie felt like she always had to step in and apply some parenting and discipline to her younger sister.</p><p>No one else would.</p><p>“It’s definitely worth looking into,” Natalie told her little sister with a smile. Happy that Summer was going to take some time off and hopefully just be by herself. Before Tom, Summer went through boyfriends like she went through eyeshadow palettes. For Summer, that meant a lot of boyfriends. Natalie just hoped that Summer didn’t go backsliding into that sort of behavior. The behavior of Summer’s teenaged years which were quite stressful on everyone close to Summer. Especially Natalie and their parents.</p><p>Summer smiled to herself as she looked forward to the idea of traveling without work being involved.</p><p>It was funny because it was only a few months ago when Summer didn’t want to travel anywhere in her time off because of Tom. They didn’t have a lot of time to spend together with work so Summer always rushed back to London every time she finished a shoot.</p><p>However, now she had so much time on her hands and she wasn’t sure if she completely liked it. It left her with too much time to dwell on the fact that it didn’t take long for Tom to move on. He had already moved on to another pretty blonde. A former childhood friend of his who Summer had met numerous times.</p><p>Asshole.</p><p>What’s worst was that everyone on the internet seemed to be shitting on Tom. Summer didn’t take satisfaction in this. Mostly because she hated being pitied and also because she just wanted to move on from the Tom drama. She didn’t want it to define her and she just wanted to do something that would help her move on for good. Maybe traveling would be the answer. The best way to leave Tom and London in the past.</p><p>“You’re taking Alex and Olivia out tomorrow?” Natalie asked and Summer nodded.</p><p>“If that’s okay with you,” Summer said and the couple nodded. “I’ll keep out of the public eye.”</p><p>“It’s totally fine. They love that you’re back in town and everything,” Natalie told her with a small smile. “Especially Alex. He really missed you.”</p><p>“You staying long?” Chris asked, hoping secretly that she would stay for a while. Summer shrugged.</p><p>“I don’t know. I already have a place here in the city but I’ve been thinking of maybe moving back to LA for a while after maybe traveling a bit,” Summer said, still not firm in her decision. “I really love New York though so I’m kind of torn. Especially since you guys live here. I mean, no one’s really in LA except friends but I also still have the house in Laurel Canyon.”</p><p>“Well, you don’t have to make a decision any time soon,” Natalie said with a sympathetic smile. “We’re just happy that you’ve moved back to the states. I mean, don’t get me wrong. We all loved Tom but I really missed having you here with me.”</p><p>“Don’t worry. I think I’m done with British guys,” Summer joked although her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.</p><p>“Yeah, you wouldn’t want to follow in Taylor Swift’s footsteps,” Chris quipped and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“I think I’m done with dating at the moment,” Summer told them honestly. “I think I need some space.”</p><p>“You’re joking, right?” Natalie questioned, raising an eyebrow at her baby sister. “You who’s always had a boyfriend since you were fifteen? I don’t think I’ve seen you single for more than a month before you and Tom started going out. That was probably the longest relationship you ever had.”</p><p>“That’s not true,” Summer said before seeing the doubtful looks on her sister and brother-in-law’s faces. “There was, like, two months between Harry and Richard.”</p><p>“You barely dated Richard,” Her sister accused and Summer blushed. “I recall you ditching Chris and I at that spring gala and going home with him followed by a brunch date and a couple weeks of passionate hot sex. Then you dumped him for Tom.”</p><p>“That was probably stupid,” Summer admitted because who dumped a literal Prince Charming for some dork who spent hours playing video games and even longer playing golf. Golf which was the world’s most boring sport. Summer swore she’d never date another guy who played golf. That had to be a sign or something.</p><p>However, it was Tom so, of course, Summer would’ve dumped anyone for him.</p><p>That’s what happened when you fell madly and stupidly in love with someone.</p><p>You did stupid things in the process.</p><p>“It’s not stupid but you’ve always been a bit boy crazy,” Natalie remarked and Summer realized that’s what set her and her sister apart. Natalie could be single for any span of time. She was decidedly less flighty than Summer in that aspect. Hell, she’d been single for almost two years when she met Chris and Summer was slightly jealous of Natalie’s ease at being single. “There’s nothing wrong with that. It doesn’t make you less independent or anything. As long as you’re in control.”</p><p>“I want to stay single this time,” Summer said determinedly but her sister didn’t look assured.</p><p>“Look, we both know you’ll say that but then you’ll meet some cute new guy next week and forget all about that,” Her sister said sincerely. “That’s fine. You’ve never been the type to be alone. You like companionship but you just have to make sure whoever the lucky guy is that you’re able to keep your priorities the same and stick to your needs and desires. Not like what happened with Tom. You lost yourself a bit there.”</p><p>“Natalie’s right,” Chris told her, giving her a small smile. “I was always like you too. I never could manage being alone but I met your sister and here we are. It’s okay not to be single. It’s not for everyone. You just have to make sure you’re making healthy choices this time around.”</p><p>“I’m just tired of my pity party,” Summer grumbled, thinking about those pictures of Tom and his new girlfriend. She was slowly getting over him but it still hurt that it didn’t take him long to move on to someone else. Like three years together was nothing to him. “Poor Summer. How could Tom do that to her? Well, guess what? I’m a fucking adult who shouldn’t be pitied because of her ex-boyfriend gallivanting around with his new girlfriend.”</p><p>“True but that’s no reason to jump head first into another relationship,” Natalie warned and Summer took another sip of her wine. “Just date around for a while. You’re only twenty-three, Summer. You’re acting like you have to rush around to find someone else. You don’t.”</p><p>“I know,” Summer said even though she really hated the idea of starting over if she was even going to date again. She just spent three years planning a future with someone only to have that future ripped away. It was still insane to her to imagine a life without Tom but it was inevitable at this point. Summer was going to move on but she was still trying to find her way.</p><p>“You’ll be fine,” Her sister said affectionately and Summer nodded. “You always land on your feet.”</p><p>Her sister was right.</p><p>Summer always landed on her feet and she was great at it.</p><p>It was just going to be harder this time.</p>
<hr/><p>“So stop the bullshit,” Chris told her as they sat on the couch watching television. It was probably some mindless reality tv show program but it was enough for Summer to distract herself without truly getting invested.</p><p>Natalie had gone to bed a while ago but Chris and Summer were night owls. They usually stayed up late either watching tv or talking. Sometimes both. People usually asked Natalie if she was worried about how close her sister and husband were but she never was. Chris always saw Summer as a little sister and Summer saw him as the big brother she never had.</p><p>It was always platonic and the thought never crossed their minds.</p><p>“What bullshit?” Summer deadpanned even though she knew exactly what he was talking about.</p><p>“I’m talking about the real reason you and Holland broke up,” Chris told her and Summer uncomfortably shifted in her seat. “Don’t tell me it was the distance and schedules. We both know it wasn’t. It was too sudden to be that and I talked to you on the phone the week before. You gushed about how excited you were for him to come home.”</p><p>“Maybe we just snapped. It all came undone with one conversation,” Summer said in response, not really wanting to talk about her and Tom’s split. It was both humiliating and painful. Summer hated even thinking about that last conversation between herself and Tom. Chris scoffed.</p><p>“Don’t BS me, Summer. You might be able to get away with it with everyone else…even Natalie but not me,” Chris accused and Summer sighed heavily. “Tell me what happened. I can tell whatever that fucking moron did really hurt you.”</p><p>“Fine!” Summer finally relented after weeks of keeping it all in. It was going to be painful whether she kept it in or said it aloud. She needed to come to terms with that. “He slept with someone else, okay! He fucked his co-star in Cleveland when he was working on the Russos’ new film.”</p><p>“What?” Chris questioned in shock.</p><p>He tried to process what Summer just said.</p><p>Chris originally thought that maybe Tom told Summer that he didn’t want to have kids. It was something he suspected whenever his mother-in-law asked the young couple when they were going to have kids. Tom would get squeamish and quickly change the subject. However, he never thought Tom would cheat on Summer. The kid adored her and practically worshipped the ground she walked on which always made Chris uncomfortable.</p><p>While Tom had been a nice kid, he acted like Summer was some sort of prize. The famous actress had been something of a celebrity crush and having her on his arm suddenly made him feel like king. The notion always made Chris frown. Like, he was showing off with Summer instead of just being proud of her.</p><p>Still…the fact that he cheated on her? Chris couldn’t believe the kid had the balls to do that and to Summer of all people. Summer who uprooted her whole entire life just to be with him. She moved to London for him for fuck’s sake.</p><p>“He told me he slept with his co-star who looks like a fourteen-year-old girl by the way,” Summer said bitterly as she stared straight ahead at the tv. “Then he made a bunch of bullshit excuses about how I was pressuring him into starting a family, how he’s emasculated by my success, and how I’m emotionally unavailable.”</p><p>“What the fuck?” Chris said in disbelief.</p><p>“I know,” Summer said, still resentful towards her ex about the situation. “I could’ve slapped the shit out of him but I was too angry to…if that makes any sense. I wasn’t even pressuring him to start a family. I just mentioned that I wanted kids before thirty and I guess it scared him off.”</p><p>“You two have been together for a while,” Chris pointed out. “Kids before thirty isn’t a weird thing to want. I mean, I didn’t have Alex until I was thirty-two but I didn’t meet your sister until I was thirty.”</p><p>“I don’t know. I think he doesn’t know what the fuck he wants,” Summer told Chris, shaking her head. “He said that he wanted us to see other people because we’re still really young and inexperienced. He wants to see what else is out there.”</p><p>“What else is out there?” Chris questioned in disbelief. “What a fucking idiot. You’re way out of his league and everyone knows it, Summer. He thinks he can find someone better? Well, fuck him. You can do so much better.”</p><p>“It was so confusing. At first, it seemed like he wanted to end things but then he didn’t want me to leave,” Summer said, still confused about what Tom’s deal was. “I don’t know what the hell he wants from me and now he’s with some other girl. Not even same one he cheated on me with which pisses me off even more.”</p><p>“I just can’t believe he did that to you,” Chris told her, furious at the very thought of Tom who he’d become good friends with ever since they started working together and then started dating sisters. “You moved to a foreign country for him, you had to sit through those boring golf tournaments, and you told me the food in London is bland.”</p><p>“All the soda tastes flat, Chris,” Summer complained before rolling her eyes. “Not to mention I had to give my fucking dog away because I didn’t want to traumatize him by making him spend twelve hours on a flight in a tiny crate just so he could move to London with me.”</p><p>“I can’t fucking believe that guy,” Chris said angrily and Summer sighed tiredly before shaking her head.</p><p>“Look, I only told you because you know me best,” Summer said sincerely as she looked over at him. “But don’t mention this to anyone else. Especially people you and Natalie work with. I’ll tell Natalie eventually.”</p><p>“Summer, you can’t tell me you’re protecting that little asshole,” Chris said seriously and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“I’m not but I just don’t want to make work uncomfortable for you guys,” Summer said as she reasoned with her brother-in-law. “I don’t want to make everyone feel like they have to pick a side. It’s better if they don’t know about what Tom did. I don’t want to dwell on it anymore. I just want to move on and leave it in my past.”</p><p>“Fine…I won’t tell anyone but you should tell Natalie soon. She should hear it from you,” Chris finally said. Even though he furious with Tom, Chris didn’t want to disrespect Summer’s wishes. “At least, Natalie and I probably won’t have to work with him again now that we’re done with Marvel for the most part. I don’t think I could stand to work with him after all that he did to you.”</p><p>“This is really hard for me, okay?” Summer said, feeling her eyes flooding with tears. “Because as much as he hurt me, I still care about him. That’s why I told my publicist not to mention the cheating. I still care enough about him to not humiliate him like that. I would never do that…even though he made a fool out of me.”</p><p>“Summer…” Chris trailed off as he wrapped an arm around his sister-in-law and pulled her closer. “Don’t waste your tears on him, okay? He doesn’t deserve them.”</p><p>“I just really thought Tom was it…as stupid as that sounds,” Summer said, sniffling as Chris held her. “I know nothing ever lasts in Hollywood but I thought I met my match. I thought we’d get married, have children, and get old together. All the Notebook bullshit but he ruined everything and I hate him for it. We were happy…or so I thought. He made me fall for him like that and then he just ripped it all away like it was nothing…like I was nothing to him.”</p><p>“He’s the stupidest man to walk the planet,” Chris murmured as he soothingly rubbed her back much like he always did whenever she broke up with one of those idiots she used to date when she was a teenager.</p><p>Chris had really seen all of Summer’s break-ups which was the outcome of knowing her since she was fifteen.</p><p>From the revolving door of arrogant, dumb teenage boys to the self-righteous drug addicted rockstar then to a popstar who was even flightier than Summer before moving on to a much older actor who was probably more interested in sex than an actual relationship and then finally to Tom who everyone liked. Chris was there for all the other ones so he’d be here for this one too because she needed it and he was her friend and brother.</p><p>“He was stupid, Summer,” Chris repeated before giving her more words of comfort. “Listen, you’re going to meet a guy someday who will be a better match than Tom. He’ll actually appreciate you, treat you like a person more than a trophy, and adore you while calling you out on your shit at the same time. He’ll be exactly who you need and he’ll consider himself a lucky bastard for you to even consider him to be the father of your baby. Most of all, he won’t take you for granted.”</p><p>“In our line of work, I seriously doubt it,” Summer said bitterly, cheeks still wet with her tears. He smiled sadly before shaking his head.</p><p>“No one’s perfect but I think you’ll find someone who makes you happy and treats you like you deserve to be treated,” Chris promised her and Summer returned his smile. “You deserve someone like that.”</p><p>“I love you so much,” Summer told him as she buried her face in his chest and Chris laughed. “I’m being serious. I love you more than anything…sometimes I love you more than Natalie but don’t tell her that.”</p><p>“I love you too,” Chris told her and Summer just rested there in her brother-in-law’s arms. She slowly started drifting off to sleep and felt comforted for the first time since the break-up.</p><p>Chris was right.</p><p>Summer deserved better than to have someone treat her like Tom did. She shouldn’t hold out, thinking that maybe they’d get back together because they wouldn’t. Summer was going to be adamant about that. Tom used to be the one but he wasn’t anymore. Summer deserved happiness and she deserved someone who could make her happy. Someone who appreciated her and didn’t take her for granted. Summer was worth it.</p><p>The blonde felt better with that knowledge. The knowledge that she didn’t need Tom and could be happy with anyone. Not just him. Summer’s own happiness was dictated by herself and what she choose. Not by men and their decisions.</p><p>It was a small step in moving on but Summer thought she could manage it.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter Two</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Summer moves back into her house in LA and gets ready for the New Years Eve party while reflecting on her life post break-up with Tom.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Five Months Later…</strong>
</p><p>Summer drummed her fingers across her kitchen island as the movers finally moved Tom’s shit out of her house. It wasn’t enough that he slept with his co-star but she was stuck dealing with these random men in her space packing all his shit while she was forced to acknowledge that era of her life was now over for good. The moving guy gave her a small smile as he held out his iPad for her to sign and she sloppily signed the document.</p><p>It was all it took to get them to leave as they took Tom’s boxed up crap and shipped it back to London…where he was and where Summer no longer was.</p><p>There was something weird about being this house by herself. She never realized how large and empty it was. She bought the house right after she and Tom broke up the first time yet right before they’d gotten back together. It was like a bachelor pad except for her. Well, technically a bachelorette pad but somehow that didn’t sound as good aloud.</p><p>Summer had thrown a couple parties here and completely trashed the place before picking up all the garbage and empty cups in the morning. She smoked a little weed with friends which Tom didn’t approve of. In fact, they’d gotten into a huge fight over him finding weed in her nightstand drawer even though Summer had literally only smoked weed three times in her life. She was forced to flush it down the toilet and promised him to never touch the stuff again.</p><p>Summer sat on the floor of her library, joint in hand, as she thumbed through her copy of <em>The Tenant of Wildfell Hall</em>. She exhaled and puffed out a cloud of smoke.</p><p>Yeah, she definitely didn’t flush that weed down the toilet.</p><p>Summer had only been back in Los Angeles for a couple days now. She left her sister, nephew, niece, and brother-in-law back in New York when she finally decided to travel like she said she would. Well, travel in-between press tours which were still an obligation she had. Summer spent most of the past four months traveling through Europe.</p><p>Italy, Spain, Germany, France, and Sweden were all places Summer traveled through.</p><p>Places that Summer never really had time to do any real sight-seeing in before. Sometimes a couple friends would join in on her travels but, for the most part, Summer had gone alone which she didn’t mind. She had a lot of fun and now looked for picture frames for all the pictures she took during her travels. Summer liked to think she’d show her kids all the pictures years from now.</p><p>She rubbed her eyes tiredly as she closed her book.</p><p>Summer just got back from spending Christmas at her parents’ house in New Mexico. They moved back after Summer turned eighteen and stopped needing a parent on set with her all the time. It was a nice Christmas with her family which was the first one she spent with them since she left for London. Natalie, Chris, and the kids spent Christmas with Chris’s parents in Boston so it was just Summer and her parents with addition of some extended family. It was actually the best Christmas she had in years.</p><p>Now it was New Years Eve and Summer was preparing to go out for the night.</p><p>Summer had been invited to Sarah Paulson’s New Years Eve party. She worked with Sarah a lot on <em>American Horror Story</em>. It had been a while since Summer was just able to go out and have a night of fun with familiar faces. Especially something that wasn’t the after-party of an award show where she was forced to rub elbows with people. It wasn’t really fun but tonight was different. The pressure was off and Summer could finally get a little bit drunk while having fun with some old friends.</p><p>Summer touched up her make-up as she got ready for tonight.</p><p>She was both excited and nervous. It wasn’t like she went out much. She’d been trying to keep a low-profile since the break-up but it wasn’t like Tom was doing the same. The press was all over him and his new girlfriend. It didn’t seem to take him long to move on from her.</p><p>It had taken a lot longer for Summer but she finally felt like she’d moved on. She wasn’t really sad about it anymore. Summer had other things going on in her life and her feelings in regard to Tom were just numbness now. He didn’t feel like someone she had planned her future with anymore. Tom just felt like he was from a different world now…a different time in her life.</p><p>Summer was strangely fine with that.</p><p>It might’ve seemed odd that Summer had settled down so young. That she even wanted to get married at her age but it wasn’t like she hadn’t dated around before Tom. Summer went through a lot of boyfriends in her late teens both that were her own age and those who were older than her. Not only that but she’d been working since she was around thirteen. It didn’t seem weird to her that after working for about a decade in the industry that she was ready for something bigger than just her work.</p><p>That and she’d gotten baby fever after Olivia had been born. Summer yearned for a baby and just wanted the same happiness her sister and Chris had. To be settled down and to have a family to come home to. That was all Summer really wanted which she didn’t think was asking for too much.</p><p>Apparently Tom hadn’t felt the same way and Summer should’ve known. He’d had minor success as a child actor but he didn’t really get his break-out role until Spider-Man. Tom was just getting started in his career and still getting used to beautiful women constantly throwing themselves at him.</p><p>Suddenly Summer wasn’t enough for him anymore.</p><p>She used to be like a shiny brand new toy to him. A big name with a big reputation and Tom was just a boy from London. She’d been glamorous and welcomed him into a world like no other he he’d ever known. Summer was the very thing of his wildest dreams. A celebrity crush and his ultimate fantasy. However, every toy loses it’s shine after a while and gets discarded into a pile with all the other old used ones.</p><p>Summer was alright.</p><p>As her sister kept telling her, she was only twenty-three. It wasn’t like she didn’t have a bunch of time to settle down and maybe it was better this way. Summer still had time to live her twenties, the alleged best years of her life, before having to worry about adult life and kids. Her sister had been twenty-six when she met Chris but Summer wasn’t like her sister. Her sister didn’t start working in the industry when she was still a child and wasn’t forced into growing up faster than normal people her age. Summer was only twenty-three but she’d been fully ready to settle down with Tom. In fact, she’d been expecting a proposal when Tom dropped the ‘I slept with my co-star’ bomb.</p><p>It showed Summer to not get her hopes up about any man.</p><p>Maybe she should dip her toes into the fan pond. There were plenty of attractive fans that proposed to her at every single Comic-Con. At least, they wanted to marry her and have babies with her.</p><p>Summer wrinkled her nose in disgust.</p><p>No, that was probably a bad idea. They more than likely lived with their parents and masturbated to pictures of her on Instagram. That and she’d probably end up murdered or paying millions of dollars of alimony.</p><p>Did every scenario for her love life end up with her either being murdered or paying alimony?</p><p>She really hoped not.</p><p>Summer applied mascara and analyzed her look in the mirror.</p><p>She was dressed in an embroidered black and gold sheath dress by Versace. A gift she’d gotten from a photoshoot once. It was sleeveless and went down to her mid-thighs. It was actually really modest as it didn’t show off any cleavage but it did make a point of showing off her long legs. She paired the dress with a pair of over-the-knee Gianvito Rossi black high heeled boots embroidered with golden flowers. She threw the whole look together with her favorite purse which was a OKHTEIN hexagon brass box purse.</p><p>Well, Summer did have lots of favorite purses but this one went with her outfit best.</p><p>Her eyeshadow was a golden shade from one of her favorite palettes blended with a glitter shade to match her dress and boots. She applied winged eyeliner to her eyes which she perfected due to years of watching professional make-up artists do the same to her.</p><p>Although Summer would never be at their level, she was pretty close it. She had light pink lip gloss on her lips and her hair was down. She didn’t really feel like putting it up in an updo in case she hooked up with anyone tonight. It was always a hassle to undo…not that Summer was set on hooking up with someone at Sarah’s party. She just hadn’t been out in a while and she hadn’t been with anyone since Tom.</p><p>Summer never really had a lot of time on her hands for that and she hadn’t had sex since Tom either. It didn’t seem like a good idea when she was traveling. She didn’t want her life to turn into that <em>Dongs All Over the World </em>SNL skit.</p><p>A total of seven months which was the longest Summer had been single since before she started dating when she was fifteen. It was probably enlightening for someone like Summer who was entirely boy crazy and who’d always had a boyfriend. Being single was sort of fun because she got to do things she kept putting off while being with Tom.</p><p>Summer realized that she hadn’t read as much as she used to so she’d been devouring books as of late and she also got to watch all the movies she wanted. Not a compromise on movies that she and Tom made because he didn’t like her weird indie horror films. There was also the fact that she hadn’t eaten any bland English food in forever. God, she missed the unhealthy American food and beverages that were non-existent in England save for the rare KFC or Burger King but nothing was quite the same as In-N-Out Burger.</p><p>It was great being single but it was also pretty lonely.</p><p>Of course, Summer had friends and everything but it didn’t help that her best friend in the world had also become good friends with her ex through the course of their relationship. Summer had to practically beg Zendaya not to be furious at Tom over their break-up. She decided not to tell her until after the <em>Far From Home</em> press tour.</p><p>
  <em>“Are you serious, Summer? What the fuck?!” Zendaya said, her eyes blazing with anger. Summer and Zendaya had been drinking a couple glasses of wine at Zendaya’s house as Summer finally talked about the break-up with her. “He fucking cheated?”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Yeah but there were other reasons too,” Summer hurriedly explained before Zendaya decided to book a flight to London and beat the shit out of Tom. “We were always busy with work and I wanted to settle down. I tend to forget how old we are even if I don’t feel like I’m twenty-three. Apparently he doesn’t feel very mature.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I don’t give a shit about the other reasons,” Zendaya swore, clutching on to her glass of wine tightly. “He cheated on you. He fucked his co-star and then came home to you like nothing happened. It’s a complete betrayal.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Look, you’re both going to work together in the future and I would rather not cause a bunch of drama. It’s already going to be difficult enough,” Summer explained to her friend who just crossed her arms. “I only told you because you’re my best friend and I can’t lie to you.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I don’t how I’m supposed to work with him now,” Zendaya complained, shaking her head. “We play love interests and I honestly don’t think I can even look at him now.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I didn’t tell you this to turn you against him,” Summer said quietly and Zendaya sighed.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I know but it doesn’t mean that I’m any less pissed,” Zendaya said softly. Summer nodded. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>“It’s fine. I’m slowly adjusting to this new life,” Summer assured her. “Maybe my sister was right. We were too young.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“You’ll be fine on your own, Summer,” Zendaya promised her. “You’re always fine and you don’t need any guy.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I think I have this complicated relationship with men,” Summer confessed, taking a casual sip from her glass of red wine. “I both love and hate them. I love the attention and games but I hate the fact that in a split second they can reduce me to nothing when they grow bored of me.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Not everyone’s like that,” Zendaya told her and Summer shrugged. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Whatever. I’m just trying to piece my life back together,” Summer said, changing the subject. “I can’t believe I actually moved to London for three years. I don’t know how I ever thought I could live so far away from Natalie and the kids. My parents too.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“I mean, people do weird things when they’re in love,” Zendaya said comfortingly and Emma just smiled as she took another sip from her wine. They then slowly moved the conversation back to their work. </em>
</p><p>This conversation was nearly a couple months ago yet Summer didn’t bring up Tom all too often to Zendaya. She didn’t want to cause any more drama and especially considering Zendaya technically still worked with him. Summer hadn’t seen Tom since they broke up which was a good thing. The only way they could possibly run into each other were at award shows but Summer had yet to bump into him. Hopefully it stayed that way.</p><p>Not that Summer wasn’t one for being friends with your ex. She was still good friends with a couple of her exes but she couldn’t be friends with Tom. Not after everything that went down between them. It was sad since Summer and Tom had started out as friends. If anything, that was the only thing that made Summer feel regretful about Tom…that they couldn’t be friends.</p><p>Summer was then interrupted in her thoughts by her phone vibrating.</p><p>A notification appeared on her phone, letting her know that her Uber was here. Summer quickly dropped her phone in her purse and headed for the door of her Laurel Canyon house. Tonight was going to be different. She was finally going to put all the Tom drama in 2019 this year and start a new life in 2020.</p><p>That was her New Years resolution.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter Three</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Summer attends Sarah Paulson's New Years Eve party and spends a startling amount of time with an actor who may or may not be a little too old for her. Not that Summer cares that much.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So I'm not making up movies for Summer's character. I've just come up with a list of films that she would've starred in. </p><p>Summer's filmography<br/>(2010-2013) Shake it Up<br/>(2011) Super 8<br/>(2011) We Bought a Zoo<br/>(2013) American Horror Story: Coven<br/>(2013) The Call<br/>(2013) August Osage County<br/>(2014) Maleficent<br/>(2014) The Equalizer<br/>(2014) The Grand Budapest Hotel<br/>(2015) Paper Towns<br/>(2015) It Follows<br/>(2016) Neon Demon<br/>(2016) Everybody Wants Some<br/>(2017) Get Out<br/>(2017) Hot Summer Nights<br/>(2017) Thoroughbreds<br/>(2017) Paper Year<br/>(2018) Assassination Nation<br/>(2018) Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again<br/>(2018) American Horror Story: Apocalypse<br/>(2018) Suspiria<br/>(2019) Once Upon a Time in Hollywood<br/>(2019) Ready or Not<br/>(2019) American Horror Story: 1984<br/>(2019) Maleficent: Mistress of Evil<br/>(2020) Emma<br/>(2020) The Queen's Gambit</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Summer, you made it!” Sarah exclaimed as she welcomed Summer into her house. Summer had never been to Sarah’s house before. They grabbed lunch a couple times when they were filming <em>American Horror Story</em> but they both had busy schedules.</p><p>“I said I’d be here, didn’t I?” Summer said before handing her a cake she picked up from a bakery she knew Sarah liked. “I got you a cake from that bakery. Remember the one I bought macaroons from that one time only to find them all gone from my trailer?”</p><p>“Ha ha. You’re never going to let me forget about that, are you?” Sarah questioned before smiling at her. “Thanks for the cake.”</p><p>“I mean what kind of person steals from a sixteen-year-old girl?” Summer asked sarcastically as she stepped into Sarah’s house which was packed full of people. All of whom were probably older than Summer. Either by a few years or a couple decades.</p><p>“You were never that innocent,” Sarah joked and looked at Summer curiously. “You look hot.”</p><p>“Thanks,” Summer said without missing a beat. Sarah sighed because she wished she’d had Summer’s confidence at that age.</p><p>“You didn’t have to come,” Sarah said as they walked in between all the people. “I know you probably have a lot of friends your age that are having crazier parties than this with tons of hot young guys. It’s not really exciting. We’ll probably just get drunk and watch the ball drop on TV. Just a bunch of boring old people.”</p><p>“Are you kidding me?” Summer said, smirking at the slightly shorter actress. “I love old people parties. Who says there aren’t any hot guys here. God, Sarah. Old people can be hot too. I don’t discriminate. I’ve been looking for a daddy lately, anyways.”</p><p>“I need to keep you away from some of my friends,” Sarah said, rolling her eyes at the blonde who thought she was so funny. “So everyone’s mostly hanging out in the kitchen and living room. I have a bunch of wine or beer if you prefer. I think Evan and Taissa are around here somewhere.”</p><p>“Sounds great,” Summer said as she spotted Evan and Taissa in the kitchen. “I’ll go talk to them while you play host.”</p><p>“Don’t get in too much trouble,” Sarah jokingly warned her but she was actually being half serious. Summer was known to be a little eccentric and unconventional for a woman her age.</p><p>“I never get into trouble,” Summer said but the mischief was present in her blue eyes. Sarah just shook her head in amusement before walking off while Summer went over to Evan and Taissa.</p><p>There were some party-goers who stared at Summer as she walked by but she pretended like she didn’t see them. Summer had a few blockbusters under her name as well as an equally famous sister so her name had turned into a household one in recent years. She normally grabbed people’s attention wherever she went. Summer wasn’t the kind of actress who could go to the grocery store without the paps noticing.</p><p>She lost those rights when she became one of the many former Disney Channel starlets.</p>
<hr/><p>“Stop eating those,” Sarah scolded Pedro Pascal who was snacking on the appetizers that were supposed to be for the majority of the party-goers. She smacked his hand and Pedro pouted. “There won’t be any left for everyone else. Shouldn’t you be on a diet or something? You know, because of Star Wars.”</p><p>“I’m in a suit,” Pedro told her with a smirk. “They can just cover my holiday chub up with padding.”</p><p>“Must be nice,” Sarah muttered and Pedro who looked around the party, noticing one party-goer in particular. He stared at her almost as if he thought he was imagining her.</p><p>“Is that Summer McGrath?” Pedro questioned and Sarah looked up. It’s not as if Summer’s presence at the party was going unnoticed. She was remarkably famous for such a young woman.</p><p>Practically A-List.</p><p>“It completely is,” Sarah told him as she fixed the decorations on the wall. Pedro stared at the tall blonde standing across the room chatting with Oscar and Elvira. She looked different than he thought she would in real life.</p><p>Not that he imagined her that much.</p><p>“She’s looks very adult,” Pedro said awkwardly and Sarah snorted.</p><p>“Well, she’s twenty-three. She technically is an adult,” Sarah reminded him. “Although I find it weird how grown-up she is. I’ve known her since she was sixteen.”</p><p>“Yeah, I remember asking you what it’s like working with a Disney kid,” Pedro said jokingly and Sarah rolled her eyes.</p><p>“And it’s fine. Summer’s great but she’s just…weird,” Sarah told Pedro, causing him to turn back to look at her. “Not in a bad way. She’s just eccentric.”</p><p>“Look at you, Sarah,” Pedro teased her. “You’re such a big deal now that you’re friends with A-Listers. At least, Oscar’s happy. I know he’s a huge fan of her work.”</p><p>“She’s actually really down-to-earth and the least Hollywood person I know. A really sweet girl. Completely crazy and weird but sweet,” Sarah informed Pedro as they watched Oscar laugh at something Summer told him. “Although, I never really know what to make of her.”</p><p>“She’s young so what is she doing at your party?” Pedro questioned and Sarah scoffed.</p><p>“That’s what I said. She probably has lots of young hot friends that she could party with yet she just showed up here,” Sarah explained as Summer seemed to charm the hell out of Oscar and Elvira with whatever she was telling them. Sarah wasn’t surprised. Summer had a certain charisma about herself that most people found irresistible. “She said she didn’t mind old people parties.”</p><p>“Hilarious,” Pedro said, chuckling at Sarah’s recollection of Summer’s words.</p><p>“But I think she just wants something low-key. Especially with all that stuff in the tabloids,” Sarah finished and Pedro nodded. How could he not know about all that? You’d have to live under a rock to not know about the stuff regarding Summer McGrath ’s highly publicized break-up with Tom Holland. Even Pedro was vaguely aware of the fact. Not that he kept up with much celebrity news.</p><p>“I’m debating whether or not I should say hi,” Pedro said as he stared in contemplation at Oscar and Summer. She definitely knew who Oscar was but Pedro didn’t want to assume that she would know who he is. “I don’t want to just assume she knows who I am.”</p><p>“She knows who you are,” Sarah confirmed and Pedro looked at her in surprise. “She really likes <em>Narcos</em>. You should totally say hi to her.”</p><p>“Maybe I will,” Pedro said, clearing his throat before Sarah watched in amusement as he walked over to Summer.</p><p>She was semi-worried.</p><p>Summer made a remark once to her about Pedro’s hot dad-bod after watching <em>Narcos</em>.</p><p>Sarah laughed at the time but Summer was so crazy that she wouldn’t be surprised if she actually made a pass at Pedro. The older actress stood watching Pedro approach Summer because she honestly just wanted to see the look on Pedro’s face when Summer openly flirted with him.</p><p>Summer was a bit of a flirt, after all.</p><p>But so was Pedro.</p>
<hr/><p>“Then Timmy said what’s the rush,” Summer said, causing Oscar to laugh. They were currently sharing stories about Timothee Chalamet. Apparently Oscar wanted some dirt on the young actor after working with him on <em>Dune</em>.</p><p>Who better to get intel than one of the actor’s closest friends?</p><p>“What did you say to that?” Oscar asked her with an amused smile while Elvira also looked amused by Summer past memories with Timothee.</p><p>“Nothing. I just walked off,” Summer said nonchalantly as she took a sip from her glass of wine. Oscar shook his head.</p><p>“You sound like a really bad influence,” Oscar told her and Summer shrugged. “Wait…you must’ve been the same age as him. Are you saying you had a fake ID?”</p><p>“Didn’t you? Didn’t everyone?” Summer retorted and Oscar nodded.</p><p>“Fair enough,” He admitted but then beamed when he saw Pedro walk up to the three of them. Summer followed his gaze and noticed Pedro Pascal. An actor she was only slightly familiar with from binge-watching <em>Narcos </em>about a year ago with Chris when she was staying with him and Natalie.</p><p>Summer glanced him over and only then remembered that he was overwhelmingly attractive for someone almost twice her age. Even more so in person. The actor was probably an inch or two taller than her without her heels judging by the fact that he only currently stood about an inch shorter than her now.</p><p>His dark brunette hair was a bit messy but in a sort of cute way. His nose was rather prominent and crooked while his eyes were dark and gleamed with youth that betrayed his actual age. Summer never really liked facial hair but she thought his moustache and patchy beard oddly suited him.</p><p>She didn’t really know what it was about him that made Summer looked at him in that way. Especially considering he was more than likely well into his forties. While Summer had been attracted to older guys before, definitely none that old. Not Dad aged, anyways. Summer also assumed that he had a sort of 70s movie star quality about him…or 70s porn star at the very least.</p><p>Summer knew he was old and probably off limits but that didn’t mean she couldn’t appreciate him from afar.</p><p>“Pedro,” Oscar greeted as Pedro approached them. “I was just wondering where you were. I assumed you were too busy with that tv series.”</p><p>“Nah, I have the next couple days off,” Pedro said, grinning at Oscar. “I haven’t seen you in a couple weeks. Good to see that you’re growing out that beard of yours. You look about ten years older.”</p><p>“You’re just jealous,” Oscar told him while Summer and Elvira watched in amusement. Pedro nodded.</p><p>“A little bit,” He admitted before Oscar turned back to look at Summer who was watching himself and Pedro curiously. The young actress was probably thinking that they were both two weird old men and questioning why she even showed up to this party.</p><p>“Summer, this absolute weirdo is Pedro,” Oscar introduced and Pedro’s eyes fell upon the blonde. “Pedro, this is Summer.”</p><p>Pedro didn’t know what he expected from meeting Summer McGrath . He always assumed she would be so young or still a kid but it was clear she wasn’t. She definitely appeared to be the young woman she actually was. Her blonde hair was long and straight and far as he could tell, it was most likely her natural color. Pedro didn’t think he’d ever met anyone quite so blonde before.</p><p>Her blue eyes were captivating and her gaze was focused as well as direct. At her age, Pedro usually had trouble keeping eye contact with people but not Summer. Her nose was pert and adorable while her skin was pale. Pedro imagined for someone originating from New Mexico, she must burn all the time. She was also tall and incredibly so in her over-the-knee boots that showed off her long legs.</p><p>Summer was gorgeous and even more so in person.</p><p>Pedro was a man and he could admit that much but that he was still all too aware that she was a couple decades younger than himself.</p><p>It was okay to look for two seconds but definitely not okay to think about.</p><p>Not without seeming like a pervert.</p><p>Besides…Pedro was never one for younger women like many actors his age. It was a bit of a cliché to be perfectly honest. He didn’t think he had much in common with younger women, anyways.</p><p>“Hi,” Summer greeted with a smile and Pedro returned her smile. She was automatically taken with the way wrinkles formed around his eyes when he smiled. His eyes strangely seemed to smile too. Summer didn’t really think that was possible.</p><p>“It’s nice to meet you,” Pedro told her politely. Summer couldn’t really think of anything smart to say back. She felt a little dumb with his gaze focused on her. Summer didn’t really know why. He was hot but in a different way than what she was used to.</p><p>“You too,” Summer told him a bit shyly which was unlike her. Oscar seemed to not notice Summer’s sudden awkwardness although Elvira smirked, thinking it was cute the younger woman seemed a little bashful because of Pedro.</p><p>“Summer was just filling me in on all the dirt on Chalamet,” Oscar explained to Pedro who nodded. He remembered him mentioning that Timothee Chalamet was something of a little prankster on set. It made sense since Summer had starred in a movie with him.</p><p>“He’s honestly a great guy. Don’t give him too hard of a time,” Summer said in all honesty. She knew Timothee was a little goofy but she also knew how in awe he was of all the older actors he was working with. He always went on about working with Oscar, Rebecca, and Javier.</p><p>“Yeah, he’s a good kid,” Oscar said in agreement before he gave Summer a curious look too. “And you know Zendaya too, right? You two used to do a show together when you were kids.”</p><p>“Ugh…don’t remind me of that. I have Disney Channel PTSD,” Summer joked, causing the three older adults to laugh. Pedro glanced at her in amusement.</p><p>“I don’t know…you seem okay,” Oscar remarked and Elvira nodded in agreement. Summer scoffed before taking a sip of her wine.</p><p>“Looks can be deceiving,” Summer said, causing Oscar to chuckle and Pedro to smile. Although, they couldn’t be sure if that was another joke. Pedro then cleared his throat before asking Summer the thing that had been bugging him since he first saw her at the party.</p><p>“So <em>Suspiria</em>…” Pedro stated causing Oscar to roll his eyes and Elvira to laugh. Summer looked at the older actor curiously, not knowing where he was going with this. “That was a…uh mind fuck. I just saw it last month.”</p><p>“He’s been going on non-stop about this movie,” Oscar explained to Summer in an apologetic tone before turning to his old friend. “So this is where I leave you, Pedro. Just try not to bother Summer too much. She might never come back to another one of Sarah’s parties.”</p><p>“Pendejo,” Pedro told him, laughing as he clapped his friend on the back. He started to walked away with Elvira following him but not before giving Summer a small smile.</p><p>“It was nice meeting you, Summer,” Elvira told her and Summer smiled back.</p><p>“You too,” Summer told her before the couple left to go chat with other party-goers. She was left with Pedro. The extremely hot actor that was a little too old for her. Summer kept having to remind herself that he was in Oscar and Sarah’s age range. Oscar who earlier referred to Timmy as a kid…Timmy who was the same age as Summer.</p><p>Pedro’s gaze was intense and Summer hoped the lighting was too dim inside the party for him to see her blush.</p><p>“Susie was Mother Suspiriorum the whole time?” Pedro asked her and Summer laughed at the serious look on his face. She starred in last year’s <em>Suspiria</em> which had mix reviews as most indie horror films did. Summer knew it was either a film loved or hated but she just couldn’t believe she was getting asked about it by a really hot guy. Hot guys were never usually interested in indie horror. “From the moment she arrived in Germany? The Audition? All of it? I had so many questions after seeing that movie. It was crazy.”</p><p>“I like to think it was more of a story of self-discovery,” Summer pointed out as Pedro listened intently to her. “She finally found the freedom she needed at the ballet academy to just be herself. I don’t think it’s any different for anyone else…you know, other than her being a murderous witch.”</p><p>“I didn’t think of it like that,” Pedro noted, feeling a bit satisfied with her answer. It definitely sort of answered, at least, one question he had in regards to the movie. “I loved it though. You know, I really liked the original a lot. The Argento one. The production design, set design, and music score was classic. I didn’t know if I would like this one but it was completely different than the original. I forgot that it was a remake. Plus, you got fucking Thom Yorke to do the score for this one.”</p><p>Summer swallowed hard as she watched the actor discuss Argento. She never met any guy who knew who Argento was let alone passionately discussed the original <em>Suspiria</em> in that way. Even before Summer filmed the remake, she was a huge fan of the original film. She was a fan of a lot of Argento’s films. Not just <em>Suspiria</em> which was perhaps his most famous. However, Summer was having a hard time remembering that Pedro was off-limits when he was talking about Argento and he looked the way he did.</p><p>“Well, Luca, the director, didn’t want to just do a remake in the classic sense,” Summer explained to him as Pedro hung on to her every word. It was strange having someone, so much older, give her words that much attention. Even with older co-stars, she was still treated like the kid in the group. Summer couldn’t deny that she didn’t like the attention. “He definitely wanted to pay homage to Argento’s original film but at the same time he wanted to show the audience something they’ve never seen before. Just an entirely new concept and obviously the visuals and set design is what made the original the masterpiece it was but Luca wanted to focus all the attention on the themes and storytelling. Not that the original didn’t have that too but Luca wanted an emphasis on it and in a different way than the original.”</p><p>“I really got that from the film and I’m so happy it didn’t try to replicate the original. It sort of stands apart,” Pedro commented before giving her another curious look. “What was filming like, anyways? I bet it was really exhausting. Considering the subject matter…but you’re probably used to it.”</p><p>“How’s that?” Summer asked in amusement and Pedro chuckled.</p><p>“You’re in a lot of dark scary films,” Pedro pointed out and Summer laughed.</p><p>“I guess I am but I’m fine with it,” Summer told him before remembering his question. “But to answer your question, it was sort of exhausting. More than anything else I worked on. Even <em>It Follows</em>. We filmed it in Northern Italy during the winter on a remote mountaintop. There was this old, probably haunted, hotel that had been abandoned for several decades that we shot it in.”</p><p>“Really?” Pedro asked in astonishment and Summer nodded.</p><p>“Yeah…I’m pretty sure it was haunted. If it wasn’t haunted than it was just really creepy,” Summer mentioned and Pedro laughed. “There was only one gas space heater on set. It wasn’t exactly a pleasant filming experience but I was such a fan of the original, I would’ve gone anywhere to film it.”</p><p>“Even in a haunted hotel?” Pedro asked her in amusement and Summer nodded with a smile.</p><p>“Especially a haunted hotel,” Summer confirmed and Pedro looked at the blonde in a different light. He wasn’t sure what he expected from her but it definitely wasn’t this. He then realized he probably talked her ear off about her career on what was supposed to be a fun night.</p><p>“Sorry. You probably didn’t want to talk about work tonight,” Pedro apologized to her and Summer didn’t really mind discussing work. Not when it was with someone who appeared to be a Argento fan. “I just get really excited about films like that and-“</p><p>“No, it’s totally fine,” Summer told him, stopping him before he kept apologizing. “I get the same way about films. Especially horror films.”</p><p>“I kind of see that. I don’t remember how many I’ve seen you in,” Pedro said in amusement and Summer shrugged.</p><p>“Getting typecast into that genre would be my dream,” Summer said and he laughed again. She was funny. “I’m obsessed with every subgenre of the genre too. I’ve tried to see everything but I don’t know if that’ll ever be possible.”</p><p>“How much horror stuff have you seen, anyways?” Pedro questioned doubtfully. “You’re what? Twenty-two?”</p><p>“I’m twenty-three, actually,” Summer corrected and Pedro groaned.</p><p>“God, twenty-three feels like a lifetime ago for me,” He told her before narrowing his eyes at her. “You’ve probably seen the <em>Scream</em> stuff, <em>Nightmare on Elm Street</em>, <em>Halloween</em>…Wes Craven and John Carpenter. Classics but not obscure in any way. You obviously know <em>Suspiria </em>but that it’s another classic. Probably Argento’s most famous film. <em>Conjuring</em> and <em>Insidious </em>are probably your favorites.”</p><p>“Everyone loves a good jump scare from the James Wan blockbusters. Don’t be snobby. Jump scares are fun,” Summer argued playfully and Pedro looked at her like he couldn’t quite figure her out. “Of course, I love John Carpenter and Wes Craven. John Carpenter’s a genius and <em>the Thing </em>is probably my favorite film of all time but I love b-movies too. You’re not the only b-movie snob.”</p><p>“Hey, I’m not judging. <em>The Conjuring</em> was fucking terrifying,” Pedro admitted but he still seemed curious about how much Summer knew about films that were probably twice her age. “Do you really know Argento that well? You weren’t even alive yet when most of his films were made.”</p><p>“You’d be surprised how little there is to do in New Mexico where I’m from. All I did was watch horror movies,” Summer told him, clearly enjoying the discussion she and Pedro were having over one of her favorite topics. Pedro was enjoying himself too. While he’d initially been excited to meet the actress, he hadn’t expected to be talking to her this long over this subject matter. “Suspiria isn’t my favorite Argento film. I mean, it’s great and a classic but honestly my favorite is Deep Red.”</p><p>“Deep Red?” Pedro asked in disbelief. “You’ve seen Deep Red?”</p><p>“Of course, I’ve seen Deep Red. It’s Argento’s best film and my favorite,” Summer told Pedro before raising an eyebrow. “Why? Haven’t you seen it?”</p><p>“Yes, I’ve seen it,” Pedro said in surprise, still not any closer to figuring Summer out. “And it’s my favorite too. The gore, moving camera, visuals, and production design. It’s Argento but in the best way. What’s your opinion on Fulci?”</p><p>“Fulci’s alright,” Summer admitted with a bit of thought. “I mean, he’s heavily inspired by Argento but he puts more of an emphasis on gore rather than storytelling. Argento is the other way around. He can definitely be brutal with his gore but I think his films are more on a grand level. They’re bigger than just the gore. If I wanted nothing but gore I’d just watch Evil Dead or Wizard of Gore. Maybe even a Rob Zombie movie…wait, I think I’m a little tipsy. I’d definitely never watch a Rob Zombie movie. Not even if it were life or death.”</p><p>“You’ve seen Wizard of Gore?” Pedro asked in disbelief and Summer casually took a sip of her wine as if it was this wasn’t strange at all. “That movie’s older than me and definitely obscure. How would you even know about it?”</p><p>“Juno,” Summer answered vaguely and Pedro furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.</p><p>“What?” Summer nodded.</p><p>“Jason Bateman’s character in Juno talked about the movie so I watched it,” Summer told him which stunned him into silence for a second before he broke into laughter.</p><p>Summer smirked and she couldn’t help but admire the way his eyes seemed to laugh with him. There was something weirdly beautiful about him. She wasn’t sure if all the horror film talk was working her up or if she was just really into him right now.</p><p>“That’s great. That’s really great,” Pedro said, still looking amused by the younger actress. “I’m surprised you were able to sit through that movie. I think I saw it when I was fifteen and threw up right in the middle.”</p><p>“I have a really twisted mind. I thought all the gore was cool,” Summer told him and he could definitely see that. Sarah was right. Summer was definitely the eccentric type. “You know, you can stop quizzing me. Just because I’m twenty-three doesn’t mean I can’t watch old films. You’ve seen Casablanca, haven’t you?”</p><p>“Is it seriously that difficult for you to think of a movie older than me? You could only come up with Casablanca which came out before my parents were born,” Pedro joked and Summer laughed. “I stand corrected. You really do know the genre. Probably better than me.”</p><p>“I’m only this sophisticated in horror. Any other genre, I’m still way behind,” Summer confessed although Pedro doubted that. He then became a bit uncomfortable from the intensity of her gaze. She seemed a bit flirtatious as they spoke but Pedro thought it was in his head. They were just chatting innocently.</p><p>He felt the sudden need to change the subject.</p><p>“So what brings you to Sarah’s party?” Pedro asks her and Summer shrugged. “I’m surprised you’re here. Shouldn’t you be at Robert Downey Jr.’s New Years bash?”</p><p>“Nope. Robert is way too Hollywood for me. Not even I can do that,” Summer denied even though she was honestly trying to avoid all the mutual friends she and Tom shared which were a lot. She was mostly either traveling or hanging out with a friend neither of them shared. It was safe to say that Summer didn’t share any mutual friends with Tom at Sarah’s party. Which is why she showed up to this party above all the other ones she’d been invited to. “She invited me and I hadn’t seen her in a while. I’m sort of living in LA now again too.”</p><p>“Only sort of?” Pedro asked teasingly and Summer smiled.</p><p>“My sister lives in New York with her family so I’ve been going back and forth for a while,” Summer informed him. “I just moved back from London several months ago. I’d been living there for the past couple years.”</p><p>“London, huh? It’s a really nice city,” Pedro told her and Summer didn’t really seem so sure. It seemed great at the time but now she just had too many bad memories there. Every memory she had there included a memory with Tom so Summer would prefer if she never had to go back to London ever again.</p><p>“It is but I missed home way too much,” Summer said, not willing to divulge much else despite that. “What about you? Do you live here?”</p><p>“I used to a while back ago when I was doing a lot more auditioning,” Pedro admitted. “But I mostly just live in New York now. Brooklyn.”</p><p>“You’ve been friends with Sarah a long time then?” Summer asked curiously because Sarah mentioned Pedro a lot before. She obviously knew they were good friends.</p><p>“Probably over twenty years or so,” Pedro told Summer much to her surprise.</p><p>They’d probably been friends since before Summer was born which made the age difference between herself and the man, she’d been spending most of the party with, more noticeable. She was starting to care less and less that it was completely inappropriate for herself to be flirting with him. Probably because she’d never met anyone who seemed to know Argento like she did.</p><p>“Wow,” Summer remarked and Pedro shrugged.</p><p>“Yeah, we’re both old,” He admitted and Summer secretly wondered if she and Zendaya would be friends that long. Summer certainly hoped so. “It’s been way too long. She’s been sort of letting me crash here while I’ve been filming the Mandalorian.”</p><p>“I just finished watching that a week ago,” Summer told him and he seemed almost surprised. Like he hadn’t assumed she’d watched it even though Summer was pretty sure everyone in the world had seen it.</p><p>“Who’s your favorite character? Me?” Pedro asked jokingly and Summer laughed because the answer was obvious.</p><p>“Baby Yoda, of course,” Summer told him and he laughed with her. He nodded.</p><p>“I understand…he’s way cuter than me. Probably better looking too,” Pedro said in response.</p><p>Summer thought Baby Yoda was definitely cuter than Pedro but she didn’t know about better looking. Summer really didn’t understand her attraction to him. It was weird. He was almost twice her age and not really her usual type. Not that Summer typically had a type. She was also really into his nose for a weird reason. She kind of just wanted bite it.</p><p>Was that weird?</p><p>“You’re not going to ask me about it?”</p><p>“Why would I?” Summer questioned, trying to keep her inappropriate thoughts at bay.</p><p>“Everyone I know has tried to get me to drop hints about it,” Pedro informed her and Summer shrugged.</p><p>“I know you probably can’t say anything,” Summer said nonchalantly. “I’m sure Star Wars is a bit different but Marvel is really crazy about that sort of stuff. I know what my sister and brother-in-law have to deal with.”</p><p>“No kidding,” Pedro said, relating to Summer’s words. “I’m constantly worried there’s Disney snipers hanging around, ready to dart me the second I spill a spoiler.”</p><p>“You only have to worry if you’re not good at keeping secrets,” Summer told him and he smiled at her in amusement. “<em>I’m </em>good at keeping secrets.”</p><p>“You look like you would be,” Pedro said and if Summer wasn’t mistaken, his tone was also flirtatious.</p><p>Was he flirting with her?</p><p>Summer wasn’t sure.</p><p>There was an almost cocky grin on his face and his eyes sparkled with mischief.</p><p>“Are you working on anything at the moment?”</p><p>“No,” Summer answered, holding his gaze and she was almost certain now that he was as attracted to her as she was to him. His eyes betrayed all else. Summer might’ve been a bit out of practice with flirting. She hadn’t really had the opportunity since before she and Tom got together. “I finished working on this Netflix series back in Germany a while back but I haven’t worked in a while. I’ve decided to take a year or so off.”</p><p>“Really?” Pedro asked with interest although he was slowly getting drawn into her blue eyes.</p><p>It might’ve been a while since he talked to a woman like this but he knew that she’d been flirting with him earlier. Pedro just didn’t know how to feel about it since she was young. He’d been not so subtle about flirting back but was it inappropriate? Maybe she wasn’t actually serious about it? Why would someone like her be flirting with him, anyways?</p><p>“No more work?”</p><p>“I’ve worked non-stop since I was thirteen,” Summer told him, once again reminding him that she started in this industry at an incredibly young age. “I’ve been told I work a little too much. Besides…it’s been nice spending time off. I just got back from traveling through Europe which I never had time to do before and I might spend the rest of my time off with my nephew and niece. I’ll still have projects in development and everything but I just won’t be on set.”</p><p>“It sounds good. I could really use some time off too,” Pedro confessed and Summer listened to him curiously. “The past six years have been crazy for me. I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t working…which is a good thing don’t get me wrong.”</p><p>“You should definitely take time off,” Summer told him. “Not that I’m not doing anything right now. There’s still things like press tours although I think I’d rather show up on set than press tours.”</p><p>“You really hate them that much?” Pedro asked, chuckling a bit although he sympathized with her. Press tours did get a little tiring after a while.</p><p>“I just hate talking about myself that much and they ask the same questions a hundred times,” Summer complained and Pedro definitely understood that. “Drinking is the only way to get through it or to make me likable.”</p><p>“You go through your whole press tour drunk?” Pedro asked in disbelief and Summer nodded as though it were normal.</p><p>“I’m not really a smiley people person,” Summer admitted. “I’m much more pleasant with a couple drinks in me.”</p><p>“I don’t know. You don’t really seem drunk to me right now,” Pedro said as he glanced her over. She didn’t look drunk. If she was then she could hide it very well. Especially for someone her age.</p><p>“I’m mildly tipsy,” Summer told him before taking another sip from her wine glass. “But I’m also really happy now.”</p><p>“Is that so?” Pedro asked her, still amused by the blonde. She might not have been drunk but she really was quite tipsy. Pedro was tipsy too. “Happy how?”</p><p>“I’m single now and I’m also not living in London anymore,” Summer said and Pedro felt a bit relieved for some weird reason that she was still apparently single. Well, not just for some reason. Pedro was attracted to the much younger woman so, of course, it made him beyond happy to know that she was single. Like, he had a chance with her even though he more than likely didn’t.</p><p>“You like being single?” Pedro inquired and Summer nodded.</p><p>“Yeah, I can go wherever I want without having to let anyone know. I can go out as late as I want and I can talk to whoever I want,” Summer told Pedro which caused him to frown a bit. It occurred to him that Summer had probably been in a controlling relationship. One filled with jealousy and for that reason it made him a bit wary as he watched her. “I love how there’s this stereotype about how women are complicated and are always nagging their boyfriends about something. I’ve actually found that men seem to be more like that. Anyways, my life is drama-free so I’m happy.”</p><p>“I think your problem is guys your own age. They lack the emotional maturity to be secure in their own masculinity,” Pedro commented which made Summer look at him curiously. “They’ll learn eventually. Women are just way ahead of us.”</p><p>“So how do I fix my problem?” Summer asked him and Pedro gave her a confused look.</p><p>“What?” Pedro questioned and Summer shrugged with an innocent expression on her face. However, Pedro had a feeling she wasn’t all that innocent.</p><p>“You said that guys my own age were my problem,” Summer reminded him and Pedro actually blushed. He was one hundred percent sure right now that Summer was flirting with him. He just didn’t know how to react to something like that. Did he flirt back or should he just brush off her advances?</p><p>“You’ll probably just have to wait until they catch up to you,” Pedro said after clearing his throat awkwardly and trying not to meet her eyes. She was strikingly confident for someone her age.</p><p>“I don’t really like waiting,” Summer told him and Pedro swallowed hard. He didn’t think a woman had ever come on so strongly to him before. Pedro laughed nervously.</p><p>“You know what they say…patience is a virtue or something like that,” Pedro told her and Summer smiled. She knew she made him nervous which was a sign that maybe he just didn’t see her as a kid. Summer could only hope that was the case. She hadn’t really connected with someone on this level in so long.</p><p>She really hoped she just wasn’t a kid to him. </p><p>Pedro changed the subject again and Summer played along. She knew he wanted her but he was just nervous about actually acting on it but Summer hoped by the end of the night that he would’ve, at least, warmed up to the idea. Because she really liked him and she wanted him just as much.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter Four</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Summer finds herself unbelievably attracted to a reluctant Pedro and using sneaky tactics, gets him to walk her home from the party. It's a night that could either end in a hook-up that's a bad idea for everyone involved or something way bigger.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This chapter contains a smut scene. It's probably only the second one I've ever written so be kind. It took me forever to write since I've actually been writing this story for quite some time and I've gone back to this chapter for weeks now. I don't really get how people can churn them out with ease. It takes me forever and I have to go back over it a second or third time before I'm happy with it. This story isn't going to have a smut scene every other chapter, by the way, but they'll pop up every now and then. </p><p>There's a Lana Del Rey reference in this chapter. Good for you if you get it. Hint: Norman Fucking Rockwell.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The clock struck twelve and 2020 was upon them.</p><p>Couples shared kisses throughout the party. It was the end of a decade and era but the beginning of a new one and with the election coming up, everyone was feeling pretty hopeful. Summer had even thought for a moment that Pedro would kiss her at midnight. He glanced at her when they watched the ball drop on Sarah’s television but then Summer remained disappointed a second later when he turned and said something to Sarah. Summer didn’t know why he was being weird. He was definitely interested in her but at the same time he treated her like she had some sort of disease since they spoke just a couple hours before.</p><p>Men were enough to give Summer a headache.</p><p>“Summer, are you heading out?” Sarah asked Summer who’d grabbed her purse from one of Sarah’s guest rooms where all the guests had thrown their purses and coats. The blonde nodded at her.</p><p>“I think so,” Summer replied and Sarah smiled at her.</p><p>“You called an Uber?” Sarah asked and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“Nah…I think I’ll just walk,” Summer told her friend and co-worker. “I live ten minutes away and I think I want a walk.”</p><p>“Are you crazy?” Sarah questioned and Summer shrugged. “It’s one in the morning and freezing outside. Look at how you’re dressed.”</p><p>“Yeah, I know. I’m just asking for it, aren’t I?” Summer joked and Sarah glared at her.</p><p>“Call an Uber,” Sarah told her and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“I don’t think I will,” Summer said a bit arrogantly. “I think I’ll just walk home all alone in the cold where anything could happen to me.”</p><p>“What do you want, Summer?” Sarah deadpanned and Summer gave her a feigned innocent look.</p><p>“Oh, nothing,” Summer said nonchalantly before meeting the older actress’s eyes. “Except it would be nice if someone could walk me home and make sure I get there safely.”</p><p>Sarah narrowed her eyes at the mischievous blonde. She knew exactly what the girl was up to with batting her eyelashes and casting shy glances at Pedro all evening. Summer was definitely hot for him which was why Pedro had been avoiding her for the last hour. Elvira had thought it was cute the way Summer flirted with Pedro but Sarah knew better.</p><p>Summer wasn’t an innocent, doe-eyed twenty-three-year-old.</p><p>The blonde had always been very comfortable speaking to men and seemed to have no preference in regards to height, looks, or even age as it would seem. She was good at getting what she wanted.  Summer liked all sorts of men and right now she seemed to be after Pedro and Sarah knew that she could have Pedro if she wanted. The blonde actress was hard to resist. Beautiful, young, intelligent, funny, and very charming.</p><p>Pedro was a goner.</p><p>“You want Pedro to walk you home, don’t you?” Sarah asked her and Summer just smirked.</p><p>“I didn’t say anything,” Summer said and Sarah just shook her head in disbelief.</p><p>“You know you’re not his type,” Sarah tried to tell the blonde. “He’s not a DiCaprio sort of guy. He likes women his own age or even older. He’s not interested in women half his age.”</p><p>“We’ll see,” Summer told her and Sarah just rolled her eyes but relented. She really didn’t want Summer walking home alone but if the crazy blonde wanted Pedro to walk her home then so be it. She’d just have to wait and see if Pedro was just another stupid man to take the bait like that.</p><p>“Fine,” Sarah told tiredly before calling for Pedro. “Pedro!”</p><p>“What? I was just about to grab a beer from the fridge. Did you want one-“ Pedro stopped when he noticed Summer standing next to Sarah all dressed to go. She had her purse with her which looked expensive and, like the rest of her outfit, looked like something out of Vogue.</p><p>“Summer is crazy and wants to walk back to her place instead of taking Uber like a normal person,” Sarah stated. Summer just shrugged.</p><p>“I’ve had enough social interactions tonight,” Summer explained, saying that even interacting with an Uber driver was too much for her. Sarah rolled her eyes.</p><p>“Just walk her home,” Sarah told Pedro who looked between Summer and Sarah with hesitance. He’d been spending the past hour trying to avoid Summer because he was a little too interested in her which he shouldn’t have been due to her age. “It’s just ten minutes from here.”</p><p>“No, that’s fine,” Pedro insisted, not seeing a problem in walking Summer home. He needed a little fresh air, anyways. Summer felt a bit elated at this or as elated as Summer found it possible to feel.</p><p>“Good,” Sarah said before giving Summer a look like she thought Summer was crazy.</p><p>She kind of was.</p><p>Summer was young and probably could have her share of young handsome men who’d be more than willing to go home with her. Sarah had even introduced her to a couple tonight but somehow she was only interested in Pedro who was old, nerdy, and kind of promiscuous. Promiscuous in a way that was probably too mature for someone in their early twenties to totally understand. Sarah didn’t want Summer getting hurt and she didn’t think Pedro had any experience with women Summer’s age to know that Summer was probably more fragile than she let on.</p><p>“You ready?” Pedro asked her and Summer nodded. They then left Sarah’s house and walked out into the cold early morning air. Sarah watched the two leave and she really hoped Pedro handled this smartly.</p><p>But he probably wouldn’t.</p>
<hr/><p>The streets of Laurel Canyon were empty as Summer and Pedro walked to Summer’s house. It was vaguely creepy as Laurel Canyon was at night. It looked like something out of a horror film. Summer knew most didn’t like LA for it’s toxic culture and traffic but Summer liked Laurel Canyon where all the artists lived during the summer of love. She always liked to fantasy about that era of time and what it must’ve been like. With Jim Morrison and Pamela Courson’s lover quarrels, Joni Mitchell’s songwriting, and the adventures of Crosby Stills and Nash.</p><p>It must’ve been nice.</p><p>A lot of stars still lived in Laurel Canyon for it’s peacefulness and beautiful drive up. It was close enough to LA for work but still far enough away to be well away from all of LA’s craziness. Summer liked it way better than the hills.</p><p>“You live close by?” Pedro asked her, breaking up the silence. Summer nodded.</p><p>“Just a couple blocks away,” Summer told him. “It’s right next to the Canyon Country Store.”</p><p>“You’ve lived here long?” He asked, continuing to make small talk because he was convinced if he made small talk that nothing would happen. Summer would grow bored of him and he’d leave her at her house and that was that.</p><p>“Well, I bought the house almost five years ago,” Summer told him, amused by his attempt to make small talk. “I only lived there for a year before I moved to London.”</p><p>“What brought you all the way to London?” Pedro asked her curiously. Summer smiled faded a bit as she shrugged.</p><p>“My ex,” Summer answered him much to Pedro’s surprise. He supposed he should’ve figured that. He was vaguely aware of the fact that her ex-boyfriend was British. “He was from London and had a bunch of family and friends there so I just moved there with him.”</p><p>“Didn’t you have family and friends here?” Pedro asked her, unable to help himself. He then winced at the word vomit that had come out of his mouth. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked that.”</p><p>“No, it’s fine,” Summer assured him and she was well past Tom being a difficult subject. She liked Pedro and it didn’t really matter what questions he asked her. After all their conversation earlier in the evening, she felt like she could give him honest answers and she liked giving him honest answers. It felt nice. “I did have family and friends here but I guess I didn’t mind moving to London. I never felt like I belonged to any one place and London seemed like a cool city to live in to a girl from New Mexico.”</p><p>“New Mexico…there’s really nothing there. I went there a couple times when I was a kid. It’s not so far from Texas,” Pedro remarked and Summer raised an eyebrow so he elaborated. “I spent half my childhood in San Antonio.”</p><p>“Really?” Summer asked curiously. She didn’t know that he was from Texas. Well, she knew that he was Chile originally but she hadn’t known that he’d grown up in Texas.</p><p>“Yeah, before we moved here to California,” Pedro mentioned and Summer smiled to herself.</p><p>“You know, I always dreamed of living in San Antonio some day,” Summer confessed to him which was something she never mentioned to anyone before. Maybe because no one ever asked or it never came up in conversation. Pedro looked at her in surprise. “I never really dreamed big. It was the only big city I’d ever been to as a kid and it seemed so glamorous.”</p><p>“It’s really not glamorous…not at all,” Pedro said, looking at the blonde in amusement. She really wasn’t what he expected. Pedro thought she’d be a spoiled actress with her gorgeous blonde tresses, beauty beyond belief, and expensive clothes but he could tell she wasn’t. She was just another small town girl who made it big in Hollywood. She came from humble beginnings and Pedro admired that about her.</p><p>“There isn’t anything where I used to live so San Antonio seemed pretty glamorous to me,” Summer told him and Pedro just took that in.</p><p>It was easy to forget how young she was.</p><p>Her words carried a lot of weight.</p><p>It was the way she spoke and Pedro didn’t know how else to describe it. He was about to say something else when she suddenly linked her arm through his. He gave her a questioning look and she looked at him innocently.</p><p>“For protection,” Summer told him as their arms remained linked. It was only then that Pedro noticed a couple of men chatting in a driveway across the street. Pedro nodded but snorted.</p><p>“They’ll probably think I’m your father,” He told her.</p><p>It was an honest observation but it was also something to remind Summer that he was probably old enough to be her father. He started to get the feeling that Summer was forgetting that small fact. Pedro expected a reaction from Summer but she seemed just as calm as before.</p><p>“You don’t look like my father,” Summer said in response and Pedro glanced at her. She was clearly flirting with him again and he wasn’t sure how to respond to it.</p><p>“No?” He asked her and she shook her head.</p><p>“Nope,” Summer told him before smirking at him. “My dad’s ancient. He had me when he was old so he’s ancient now.”</p><p>“How old is he?” Pedro asked her curiously and Summer laughed.</p><p>“He’s sixty-nine,” Summer told him and Pedro had to admit that was an old parent to have at her age. “So you definitely couldn’t be my father.”</p><p>“Maybe not <em>your </em>father,” Pedro told her as they crossed a street. “But the father of one of your friends.”</p><p>She supposed it was a bit weird. He was older than a lot of her co-stars who still referred to her as a kid. Summer knew it would be bad if something like this ever reached the masses. Really bad but Summer didn’t really care at one in the morning on New Years Day.</p><p>“I guess,” Summer said, clearly not convinced by his statement. Either that or she didn’t give a shit. “Here it is.”</p><p>Pedro looked up and realized that her house really was next to the famous Canyon Country Store. It was just a short distance down the street. The house looked large yet lavish with flowers decorating the huge privacy wall that shielded it from the street. Pedro narrowed his eyes as he noticed a street sign.</p><p>“I’m sorry…does that street sign say Love Street?” Pedro asked as he tried to read the sign. “Love Street as in the-“</p><p>“The Doors?” Summer finished for him and he nodded, looking curious. “It used to be Jim Morrison’s house.”</p><p>“Are you fucking kidding me? You honestly live in Jim Morrison’s old house?” Pedro asked in amazement and Summer almost giggled. No one really cared about that fact before. Tom didn’t even know who Jim Morrison was.</p><p>“Yeah, I do,” Summer confirmed and Pedro ran his eyes over the house. It didn’t look like what he expected Jim Morrison’s house to look like. “That’s why I bought it, actually. I grew up on the Doors, Jefferson Airplane, and Crosby Stills and Nash. When it was up for sale, I couldn’t resist.”</p><p>“Wow…” Pedro remarked, still amazed by this new information. Summer swallowed hard before gathering a bit of courage.</p><p>“You know, he had a secret bathroom in the house,” Summer told him and Pedro looked back at her. “You can’t really go inside it but there’s a thing behind the mirror in the master bathroom where you can see inside it. Apparently he used to shower in there after going on weekly benders so he wouldn’t dirty up Pamela’s bathroom. There’s song lyrics and scribbling still on the wall. Some of the other members came by in the past and signed the wall too.”</p><p>“No shit,” Pedro said as he stared at the house. Summer stared at him.</p><p>“Do want to come inside and see it?” Summer asked him and Pedro looked back at her in shock. He considered her words for a moment and hesitated a bit. Pedro knew it was a bad idea and that he probably shouldn’t come inside the house but he couldn’t resist the chance to take a look at a piece of music history.</p><p>“Sure…just for a couple minutes,” Pedro told her and Summer nodded. She took her key out of her purse and unlocked the door at the wall.</p><p>The door seemed heavy so Summer probably didn’t have to worry about overzealous fans breaking in. Pedro glanced at the yard between the wall and the house. It was gorgeous with even more beautiful gardens outlining the walk way to the front steps. When they reached her front door, she unlocked that one too.</p><p>“Lots of doors,” Pedro remarked and Summer scoffed.</p><p>“Yeah, well, it wouldn’t be home without a stalker, would it?” Summer said sarcastically and Pedro chuckled before she opened the door and she walked in. Pedro followed. He then balked at how gorgeous the house was. It seemed like something out of a magazine.</p><p>There was a large open concept to the living room with it opening up to the very large and state of the art kitchen. It didn’t have a modern flare to it like most expensive homes did in the area or like Sarah’s house. It seemed more bohemian which was quite fitting for a house that used to belong to a rockstar.</p><p>A house that now belonged to a movie star.</p><p>There were pictures adorning the walls of what Pedro must’ve assumed was Summer’s family. He expected more celebrity friends to adorn her walls but the only celebrities he spotted were Natalie McGrath, Chris Evans, and Zendaya. Natalie McGrath and Chris Evans made sense since Pedro obviously knew that Natalie was her sister and he was also vaguely aware that Chris Evans was her brother-in-law. All the other pictures must’ve been of her parents and more than likely her nephew and niece that she mentioned earlier.</p><p>There were no awards anywhere either.</p><p>Pedro didn’t doubt that she probably had around a hundred awards but none were on display.</p><p>Summer seemed to walk towards the staircase at the back of the house and Pedro was left with no choice but to continue to follow her. He looked around in awe at the house as he tried to imagine Jim Morrison living here at one point in his life. It was so long ago. Even before Pedro was born and he felt a bit giddy at seeing the bathroom Summer told him about. It felt silly to get giddy over a bathroom but it was Jim Morrison’s bathroom, after all.</p><p>She walked inside her large bedroom, once they reached the second floor, that was probably twice the size of his bedroom back in his Brooklyn apartment. The bed was huge and Summer had a beautiful painting adorning the wall above the headboard. The door to her walk-in closet was open and Pedro could see an endless collection of clothes. The closet seemed like another room in itself.</p><p>He raised an eyebrow in amusement at the stack of books on her nightstand before she walked into the bathroom.</p><p>“Here it is,” Summer said as he walked into the large bathroom which had not only a bathtub but the biggest shower he’d ever seen. Her vanity counter was filled with an assortment of different makeup that Pedro couldn’t even name. He recognized eyeshadow palettes and foundation but de-slick complexion primer? Glow wand? Eyeshadow primer? Glow kit? Pedro had dated his fair share of women in his life and even lived with a few but never had he ever seen such a variety of makeup.</p><p>Summer opened the mirror which popped open like a door and Pedro saw a hole behind it. She looked at him expectantly as she gestured towards it. Pedro glanced at her for a moment curiously before looking through the hole and to his surprise, it did show another room. A separate shower that was closed off from the bathroom. Vintage looking tile with odd scribbling over it.</p><p>“Wow,” Pedro said, deeply impressed by what he was seeing. Jim Morrison’s handwriting. It looked like a bunch of nonsense but only nonsense Jim Morrison could’ve written.</p><p>“And that’s his. He wrote all of that.”</p><p>“Most of it,” Summer confirmed. “Apparently some of the other band members stopped by over the years to sign the wall so it has their signatures too. It’s really sad and sometimes I don’t know why I bought this place.”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Pedro asked, finally looking away from the hole and back to Summer.</p><p>“I don’t know. He was like a legend and so incredible, all of them were back then, and nothing will be ever be the same again,” Summer told him and Pedro understood what she meant. Everyone lived in a different more appealing time back then and this day and age was totally different. Nothing seemed as beautiful or majestic as the summer of love.</p><p>“You wonder if the world would’ve been a better with people like him still in it.”</p><p>“Probably,” Pedro said, giving one last look at the secret shower before closing the mirror. “But the way he was going, he probably wasn’t much for this world. If it hadn’t been Paris, it would’ve just been somewhere else.”</p><p>“Yeah, or maybe he really is still living in Africa,” Summer joked and Pedro laughed.</p><p>“Hopefully,” Pedro told her before looking at her in amusement. “How do you know so much about the Doors? Or even who the Doors are? I thought people your age just liked Taylor Swift and Drake.”</p><p>“I told you. My dad’s ancient so I grew up on all that music,” Summer told Pedro. “But you can still love the Doors and Jefferson Airplane while still loving Taylor Swift and Drake.”</p><p>“I saw the vinyl collection in the living room,” Pedro pointed out and Summer nodded. “Your collection could put Oscar’s to shame.”</p><p>“He has a lot?” Summer asked and Pedro chuckled before nodding.</p><p>“So much that had to rent a storage unit when he and Elvira had the first little one,” Pedro informed her and Summer laughed. “I always thought he was crazy for going to back to vinyl but he always insisted that vinyl was going to make a comeback. I guess he was right. I was always a cassette man, myself.”</p><p>“I like vinyl. It really blows my mind,” Summer told him and Pedro raised his eyebrows. “Like, I understand how streaming works because of the internet but it blows my mind how they were able to get entire albums of music on to the LPs and for the music to play just by the needle hitting it.”</p><p>“Wow…I feel so old right now,” Pedro said, trying to hold in his laughter. Summer playfully glared at him.</p><p>“My dad got me into vinyl too. He gave me some of his before I moved out,” Summer said fondly. “He’s really the world’s biggest Fleetwood Mac fan.”</p><p>“I’m the world’s biggest Fleetwood Mac fan,” Pedro told her and she laughed again.</p><p>“Isn’t everyone?” Summer told him and he supposed she had a fair point. He was a bit jealous because he knew she and Sarah met Stevie Nicks. The rockstar guest starred on one of the seasons of <em>American Horror Story</em>.</p><p>“What’s your favorite?” Pedro asked her and Summer raised an eyebrow. “Musician? Other than the Doors and Jefferson Airplane who you love mentioning so much.”</p><p>“There’s too many to name,” Summer told him before considering it truly. “But Eagles definitely. And Dolly Parton…and the Kinks. Oh and Dylan too. Then there’s more recent musicians like Lana Del Rey and Mitski.”</p><p>“Dylan, huh?” Pedro said and she nodded.</p><p>“I got really into him with a movie I did when I was fourteen,” Summer admitted. “I didn’t really know anything about him until Cameron Crowe sort of introduced me to his music and I became a huge fan. He gave me Dylan’s harmonica as a wrap gift.”</p><p>“Bob Dylan’s harmonica?” Pedro asked in disbelief and Summer nodded. “You have it?”</p><p>“It’s in my room,” Summer explained to him. “It was from one of his tours, I guess, and somehow Cameron got it before giving it to me as a present.”</p><p>“That’s the coolest fucking thing I’ve ever heard,” Pedro told her before shaking his head. “The best wrap gift I got was a bottle of really expensive wine.”</p><p>“Those are nice,” Summer pointed out before smiling at the older actor. “Do you want to see it?”</p><p>“The harmonica?” Pedro asked and she nodded. He knew it was getting really late but it was New Years Day and he was off today, anyways. Fuck it.</p><p>“Sure, why not?”</p>
<hr/><p>“Dylan’s spit actually went into this thing,” Pedro stated as he and Summer sat on the edge of her bed while he examined the instrument in his hands. “Have you ever tried to play it?”</p><p>“Nope,” Summer told him. “That would be gross. Swapping spit with Dylan.”</p><p>“You could always disinfect it,” Pedro pointed out and Summer shrugged.</p><p>“Nah…” Summer said, shaking her head. “I think I’ll just keep it to look at.”</p><p>“You know, Oscar would kill to have this thing,” Pedro told her and Emma laughed. “This is something out of one of his wet dreams.”</p><p>“Have you been friends for a long time?” Summer asked curiously and he nodded as he inspected the harmonica one last time before handing it back to her.</p><p>“We did a play together a long time ago. It was my first one in New York,” Pedro informed her and Summer nodded, listening intently to him. “We’ve kept in touch ever since. We actually did a movie together that came out a few months ago.”</p><p>“I heard about that one,” Summer told him and Pedro chuckled.</p><p>“It’s so weird how long it’s been. We were both a lot younger back then and now look at him,” Pedro said as Summer listened. She could really listen to him talk all day. His voice was deep and almost sultry. It just added on to all the different ways she found him attractive. “He’s married now with kids and I’m…”</p><p>“A childless dilf?” Summer suggested and Pedro started laughing. She was alarmingly funny which was bad. Pedro always had a thing for humor.</p><p>“A childless dilf? I don’t think I’ve ever gotten that one before,” Pedro said in amusement and Summer shrugged. “God, the terms you young people come up with these days.”</p><p>“You’re not that old,” Summer told him because it seemed as though he kept reminding her that he was old and she was not. Pedro scoffed.</p><p>“Compared to you I am,” Pedro retorted and Summer rolled her eyes. “Do you do this often? Hang out with people twice your age?”</p><p>“All the time,” Summer told him. “I’m a former child actor, after all, and you’re much easier on the eyes than most old people.”</p><p>“Yeah?” Pedro said with a small smile on his face and Summer nodded.</p><p>“I think so, yeah,” Summer confirmed and Pedro stared at her thoughtfully for a moment.</p><p>“You didn’t invite me in here just to see Jim Morrison’s secret shower, did you?” Pedro asked her and Summer gave him an innocent look. He didn’t know if that frustrated him or aroused him.</p><p>“I don’t know what you mean,” Summer replied, feigning obliviousness. Pedro gave her a look.</p><p>“Don’t play games with me,” Pedro told her but his voice betrayed the seriousness of the situation. He sounded almost flirtatious as he spoke which caused Summer to blush.</p><p>“You know that I’m forty-four, don’t you?”</p><p>“I do,” Summer told him and Pedro didn’t detect any falter or surprise in her tone.</p><p>“And you’re twenty-three,” Pedro reminded her. Summer knew it sounded kind of bad when he said it aloud but she didn’t really care. She really wanted him. When they talked the whole night, he listened to her every word. In fact, they had long conversations about favorite films and favorite music. Summer couldn’t remember the last time she spoke like that with anyone. Especially a guy. “That doesn’t bother you?”</p><p>“No, not really,” Summer told him as she looked over at him. “If it really bothered you so much then you wouldn’t have come in.”</p><p>Pedro fell silent because he realized she was right. He could’ve very easily said no and went back to Sarah’s place but he hadn’t. Pedro went inside because he was secretly very attracted to the blonde and deep down had been hoping she’d invite him in. He knew it could’ve easily turned into a mistake but at the same time he didn’t really mind.</p><p>“You’re young and you’re gorgeous. Don’t blush because I know you know it,” Pedro told her softly and maybe Summer did know it but it was different hearing it from his lips. He was so different than the guys she’d been with before. Maybe it was because he was a man…legitimately a man. Not just some guy like Tom who didn’t even have facial hair to shave or who drooled over pictures of Instagram models. “I’m sure you’d rather go home with someone your own age.”</p><p>“I’m not a child. I can my own decisions. I own this house, don’t I?” Summer told him and Pedro could tell she didn’t take well to being treated like a child. Perhaps because of starting out so young in this industry, she still got treated like a child and it probably annoyed her.  </p><p>“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to insinuate that you’re a child,” Pedro apologized to her genuinely which no one had ever done before. Not for treating her like a child. “You’re obviously an adult and I know that. I just don’t want you to think I’m taking advantage of you. You had a little to drink tonight.”</p><p>“You drank tonight too and it takes more than a glass and a half of wine to get me drunk,” Summer informed him and Pedro realized it was a losing battle trying to figure out why she seemed so intent on him being here with her. “Why do you question everything? I’ve never met anyone who’s given me the third degree like this before.”</p><p>“You could get me into a lot of trouble, McGrath,” Pedro told her and they were really close.</p><p>Their noses practically touching at this point and the tension going on between them the entire evening was finally being addressed. He glanced at her carefully one last time before his eyes fluttered shut and Summer’s did too. Their lips met during the quietness of the very early morning. Her bedroom was dark with nothing but the moonlight illuminating it from the windows.</p><p>Summer felt a little breathless as he kissed her. It had been so long since she’d kissed anyone. Not since Tom and Summer always feared that she would compare it to him but in that moment, Tom was the furthest thing from her mind. She felt a bit giddy just from feeling the warmth of his body through his shirt. Summer realized that she was truly touch-starved then.</p><p>It would’ve been a bit pathetic had she not been caught up in the moment.</p><p>The way Pedro kissed her was different than what she was used to. It started out soft and tender but it quickly moved into something more heated and almost desperate as the seconds flickered by.</p><p>Somehow she ended up on her back on the bed and underneath Pedro in the midst of him deepening the kiss. Her breathing hitched as her fingers traced the soft, almost patchy, facial hair that lined his jaw. One of his hands found it’s way to her hip while the other rested just above her shoulder as though not to put any of his weight on her. She was overcome with lust for him and if she was being honest she felt that way all night.</p><p>Bob Dylan’s harmonica remained discarded and forgotten on the bedroom floor.</p><p>Summer got a bit nervous yet excited because she hadn’t had sex in months. She hadn’t really been in any position for it and Summer hadn’t felt the most confident after Tom. It really messed her up in a lot of ways.</p><p>Getting cheated on could do wonders to a person’s self-esteem.</p><p>“Can I take these off?” Pedro asked her in between moving his attention to the column of her throat.  He also briefly broke the kiss as he looked at her for an answer. Summer was in a bit of a daze but realized he meant her boots. She nodded and he hastily unzipped the zipper. His fingers trembling a bit in anticipation and he silently cursed the zipper for being so long.</p><p>There was something sensual about him taking her boots off as she watched him. His calloused fingers caused her to shiver as they brushed against her soft skin. He finally slid the boot off her long leg before moving on to the other one.</p><p>Once the boots dropped on to the floor he resumed kissing her, each kiss more intense and heated than the last. Summer didn’t know him but she thought she could get addicted to him. He already had her hooked after only making out for a short time.</p><p>“Your shoes are complicated,” Pedro whispered to her as he continued trailing the column of her throat with soft kisses. His facial hair tickled the sensitive skin of her neck while her fingers raked through his soft dark hair.</p><p>“I like them,” Summer told him, her heart fluttering at his touch. “They go well with my dress.”</p><p>“They really do,” Pedro admitted as he pushed her dress up past her thighs, sliding his hand under the skirt. “I’d rather see you without any of it.”</p><p>Pedro heard a sharp intake of breath from Summer as she felt his hand linger under her skirt and against her skin. He halted his kisses against her neck but only to look down at her as if for reassurance that this was all okay. Summer was briefly speechless at the lust-blown look in his dark eyes that probably matched her own in that moment. Lust-blown, yes, but also affection and fondness in them that Summer hadn't expected to find.</p><p>“Okay,” Summer said softly to his unspoken question. She then arched her back so he could pull down the zipper of her dress. He hesitated for a brief second in surprise before he hastily unzipped her dress. Pedro pulled the article of clothing off and hastily threw it on the bedroom floor.</p><p>Pedro paused for a moment as he stared down at her, taking a moment to admire her in all of her beauty. She laid before him in nothing but lacy black lingerie that left very little to the imagination. Pedro’s breathing hitched as he continued to stare at her. </p><p>Fuck.</p><p>She was so gorgeous.</p><p>Summer blushed under his intense gaze. Pedro abruptly closed the gap between them with another kiss and she eagerly reciprocated. Her fingers tangled up in his thick dark hair as he deepened the kiss.</p><p>Her fingers found their way to the hem of his shirt and Summer began to pull his shirt up. He took it off the rest of the way and tossed it into a corner of the room to be found at some later time. She took a moment to look at him and Pedro blushed. Not because he had taken his shirt off but because he knew Summer must’ve been more used to men her own age. Men who went to the gym regularly and had defined abs.</p><p>“Yeah, you know, I haven’t been to the gym in a while with work and-“ Pedro started to say and Summer immediately interrupted him with a kiss. She didn’t care that he wasn’t ripped with muscles. This man was gorgeous and Summer had never met anyone she wanted so much without hardly knowing them.</p><p>Pedro unclipped her bra and pulled it off her. He cupped her breast in his hand. Fuck, he couldn’t get over how beautiful she was. She was entirely breathtaking and Pedro couldn't get enough of her. He kissed the top of her breast before taking her nipple in his mouth while gently massaging her other breast.</p><p>Summer moaned and couldn’t deny how nice it was to feel this wanted by someone. This desired. That’s how she felt under his gaze and touch. It was something she hadn’t had for some time.</p><p>Pedro quickly moved back up to her lips and kissed her again. It was only then that Summer felt him against her stomach and it didn’t escape her notice that even the outline of him in his jeans felt larger than what she was used to. Her fingers tangled in his hair as his tongue clashed against hers. He groaned when she bucked her hips against him, rubbing against his length.</p><p>“Fuck,” Pedro told her as he trailed sloppy kisses all the way down to her collarbone. “Hermosa, I’m not going to last long if you keep doing that.”</p><p>Summer shivered at the pet name. It was clearly Spanish and Summer didn’t know what it meant but it made her blush. If she was watching a movie she would’ve rolled her eyes or cringed but it was different coming out of his mouth. He boldly cupped her clothed center and Summer gasped. Pedro could’ve moaned as he felt her though her lace thong before playing with the waistband of her panties.</p><p>“You’re so wet,” He said and he surprised her by talking a little bit dirtier than she was used to. Summer definitely pegged him as the type but it still caught her off guard. “For me?”</p><p>“Yes,” Summer told him as she gently nipped his bottom lip, causing him to grunt. He started rubbing her over her clit and she moaned against his lips.</p><p>“Is this what you thought about all night?” Pedro asked her as he continued rubbing his thumb over her. “You thought about me taking you home and touching you like this? Did you get wet just thinking about it?”</p><p>“That and more. I thought about you taking me home and fucking me so hard that I can’t walk for the rest of the day,” Summer admitted boldly which honestly was the truth. Pedro swallowed hard because he hadn’t expected that from Summer. He shouldn’t have been surprised. She’d been pretty bold the entire night.</p><p>“I thought about what you taste like,” Pedro told her in the next moment as he wordlessly pulled her panties to the side and slipped a single digit in slowly. She gasped but moaned as he started moving his finger. He nearly groaned at how tight her walls felt just around his finger. Pedro could barely imagine how tight she would’ve felt around him.</p><p>“I thought about what you’d look like with my head in between your thighs. I thought about what you’d look like on top of me bouncing on my cock.”</p><p>“Really?” Summer asked him in surprise and Pedro chuckled as he looked down at her. She was still getting used to this dirty talk thing and especially from the way he made her feel so desired.</p><p>“Absolutely. I mean every word I just said…unless that’s too far for you and I can reel it back,” Pedro said, a bit worried that he might’ve come on too strong. She was a lot younger than him, after all. She just smiled softly before shaking her head.</p><p>“No, I like it,” Summer told him before trying to explain her awkwardness. “No one’s ever said anything like that to me before.”</p><p>“Well, I’m saying it and I mean every word,” Pedro told her softly, knowing that he had to be gentle with her at the same time because of the age difference. Although she was twenty-three, she was still vastly more inexperienced than he was. “Just like I’d really love to know how you taste.”</p><p>“Please,” Summer told him, his words maybe even making her wetter than before. He smirked as he withdrew his finger, making Summer almost whimper at the loss of contact while her walls clenched around nothing. He didn’t waste any time quickly pulling off her thong and tossing it into some dark corner of the room.</p><p>“Open your legs,” He commanded, his voice low and husky. Summer shivered from the tone of his voice. She felt a bit shaky because no one had ever talked to her like that before but it wasn’t from fear. It was from pure nerves. Summer wasn’t a person who often felt nervous or unsure of herself but somehow this man had melted her into a puddle of nerves and blushes.</p><p>Summer obliged him and did exactly as he told her. He didn’t hesitate in pressing kisses down the length of her body, kissing her inner thighs before moving towards her center. He seemed to be really good at teasing and making her body feel hot like it was on fire from his burning kisses. He gently spread her lips and Summer moaned, her face flushed, as she felt his tongue.</p><p>Pedro glanced up at her as he lightly licked her folds before licking a stripe up her clit, causing her to gasp in surprise. He was right about how good she’d looked in his earlier fantasies just a couple hours before with his head in between her thighs. Her face was flushed red, her eyes closed, and her chest heaved up and down with each movement of his tongue and his hand splayed across her stomach.</p><p>“Pedro!” Summer moaned as he continued lapping her up like she was a meal to be devoured. She was very close and Pedro didn’t stop for anything. His beard added to the friction and Summer tangled her fingers in his hair as if to hold him closer to her. He didn’t seem to mind as he moaned and hummed against her, clearly taking great pleasure from everything he was doing to her.</p><p>“Pedro. Please,” Summer pleaded as she felt her orgasm approaching while he sucked on the bud of her clit. It was so strange to think just an hour ago he was walking her home and now he was in her bedroom devouring her like a starving man. She’d never had sexual partner who was that enthusiastic about going down on her. It was a little more than nice.</p><p>Pedro’s hand pressed down against her stomach hard as the pace of his tongue increased just the slightest. He moaned against her once more which finally sent Summer over the edge as she screamed his name.</p><p>Pedro was practically throbbing in his pants as he watched her catch her breath, unable to keep the smirk off his face. Pedro still couldn’t believe this was happening. She was here in bed with him. It was everything he fantasized about earlier in the evening and yet it still felt like a dream. A wild dream but still a dream.</p><p>“Fuck, you tasted even better than I imagined,” He told her which caused her to blush. Pedro kissed her softly and Summer could taste herself on his lips. Her hand moved between them and surprised him when she began to palm him over his pants. A sharp intake of breath came from Pedro but he removed her hand, causing her to look at him in confusion.</p><p>“Maybe another time,” Pedro told her, looking at her in utter desire. Another time? Summer stared at him in surprise. Did that mean he was interested in this being more than a one time thing? “I have to have you tonight.”</p><p>Pedro seemed to notice the surprised look on her face and wondered if he crossed a boundary. He needed to remember she was younger than him so he had to be gentler with her. Pedro didn’t want her to feel like she didn’t have any power in this. In fact, he wanted her to have all the power.</p><p>“Unless you don’t want to,” Pedro told her and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“No, I want to,” Summer promised him, giving him her full consent. He smiled softly at her and kissed her again. He paused when he suddenly remembered something and Summer looked up at him in puzzlement.</p><p>“I don’t have a condom,” Pedro admitted. It’s not like he was in his twenties when he carried a condom everywhere he went. Preferably in his wallet. Sex became a lot less spontaneous the older you got or so Pedro found. Summer shook her head.</p><p>“I’m on birth control and I’m safe,” Summer told him and looked up at him with her beautiful blue eyes. Ones that even made Pedro feel a bit nervous. “Are you?”</p><p>“I am,” Pedro confirmed and Summer smiled at him. “Are you sure?”</p><p>“I want this. I really do,” Summer assured him and Pedro felt his heart skip a beat. It had been a while since he had sex and something about Summer made everything feel more intense. She was gorgeous and young. The blonde could definitely have her share of men but for some reason she picked him and after tonight, Pedro supposed he would never know why.</p><p>“If you’re really sure,” He told her and she nodded, laughing a bit at how he kept trying to make sure she was okay with this. It was nice. No one had ever asked for her consent that many times before and Summer really appreciated it. It was definitely something she could’ve used when she was younger but she was glad to be with someone who gave her the choice of backing out whenever she wanted.</p><p>“I am,” Summer said in response and that was all Pedro needed to hear before he started unzipping his pants, pulling both those and his boxers down. Pedro quickly stepped out of his pants and  boxers that pooled around his feet. He climbed back over her and Summer stared at his cock, slightly in alarm and slightly impressed at the same time.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” He asked her in concern and she blushed.</p><p>“It’s just that you’re bigger than I thought,” Summer told him, looking back up at his face. That wasn’t an unknown fact to Pedro so he just smiled and captured her lips with his again.</p><p>“I’ll go as slow as you want,” He promised her and she felt comforted by the fact. Safe, even. Summer honestly didn’t think she had taken anyone as big as Pedro before. It was actually kind of intimidating. Her exes hadn’t been that thick and it seemed like her fantasy of not being able to walk because of him might actually come true.</p><p>“Okay,” Summer said softly. She didn’t really know what else to say. Summer didn’t make a habit of taking strangers home.</p><p>“Just let me know if you need me to stop and I will,” Pedro told her and Summer nodded. She didn’t think she would want him to stop but she appreciated his caring nature nonetheless. His lips met hers again and her fingers tangled in his hair. She seemed to really love his hair and Pedro didn’t mind.</p><p>“You’re fucking gorgeous, you know that?” Pedro told her sincerely against her lips</p><p>“You are too,” Summer told him a bit shyly and she didn’t correct herself because he definitely was gorgeous. Whenever he looked at her, her heart hammered in her chest and she felt like she might erupt into flames.</p><p>Pedro glanced down at her as he held his cock in his hand, stroking it before she felt him line himself up at her entrance. She gasped a bit from the sensation. Summer winced a bit uncomfortably as he slowly entered her inch by inch. She was right. He was without a doubt bigger than anyone she had ever been with.</p><p>“It’s okay,” He said softly to her although he stumbled through his words from how her walls clenched around him. Fuck, she was absolutely torturing him and what was worst was she probably had no idea. “Just tell me when to move.”</p><p>She nodded once more as he allowed her time to adjust as he buried himself to the hilt. If she wasn’t aroused already from earlier, she wouldn’t have been completely certain that she’d be able to take him.</p><p>“I’m ready,” Summer told him quietly once she felt she was adjusted enough. Pedro nodded and didn’t waste any time before moving. Summer gasped, still feeling a bit of discomfort and he peppered her face with kisses.</p><p>“I’m sorry, Hermosa,” He murmured to her.</p><p>It was strange.</p><p>She thought he’d be rougher or less affectionate than he was since she invited him into her house with the intention of sex. Pedro didn’t have an obligation to be gentle or affectionate and yet he was. He made love to her like he was a boyfriend instead of a man she barely knew. Summer found that she preferred it much more than if he just fucked her hard and fast, making it an encounter of nothing but meaningless sex that she’d regret the next day. Summer didn’t really want meaningless sex and perhaps he didn’t either. It was nice feeling like she was more than just an object even in the eyes of someone who wasn’t a boyfriend.</p><p>He moved gently at first with a slow yet torturing pace. The discomfort she felt faded and turned to pleasure as he thrust inside her, drawing out a moan from Summer. He quickened his pace once he knew that she’d adjusted to him.</p><p>“Fuck, Summer, you feel so good. So tight for me,” Pedro told her, his breath tickling her ear, as he squeezed his eyes shut momentarily from the way her walls continued to clench around him. He opened them again to look down at her. Pedro never thought this was what his night was going to turn into when he first met her at the party but he was glad things took the turn they did.</p><p>“You feel...good too,” Summer almost stuttered, barely able to speak from the way he made her feel. His lips met hers in a fiery passion and Summer dug her nails into his skin as if she were afraid what would happen if she let go.</p><p>Pedro's hand moved in between where they were joined. He dragged his thumb to her clit where he rubbed circles as he increased his pace. Summer cried out in pleasure as she felt him thrust deeper on top of the stimulation of her clit.</p><p>Pedro grunted as he felt her walls clench around him tighter. He knew he almost had her right where he wanted her. She was close. He kissed her roughly as one of his thrusts hit a little deeper than before, his lips muffling her moan. Pedro couldn’t even bring himself to think of it as fucking her. It seemed like the wrong wording. After only meeting her that night, Pedro had formed a connection with her that he hadn’t felt towards someone in a while. If she’d been older, he would’ve had no hesitation in asking for her number and taking her out to dinner.</p><p>However, the situation was complicated.</p><p>“Pedro, it’s too much,” She whimpered as she felt a bit overstimulated. Summer orgasmed only a short time ago and now he was keeping her right on the brink. Summer didn’t know what she’d do with herself if she didn’t come. She could even feel his cock twitch within her so she knew he was close too.</p><p>“No, it’s not,” He said gently as his movements became sloppier and relentless, causing Summer to feel like she was going to melt into a puddle. She could feel her second orgasm fast approaching. “I want you to come for me again. You look so beautiful when you come for me. Are you close?”</p><p>“Yes,” Summer said and Pedro started furiously rubbing her clit. Summer felt like everything was too much. Between him stimulating her further and his thrusts hitting a spot she wasn’t sure anyone had ever quite hit before.</p><p>He fucked her so good that she almost told him she loved him which was the most insane thought to ever go through Summer’s mind. That’s how crazy he made her feel.</p><p>“Summer, cum for me,” Pedro pleaded with her as he felt his own orgasm approaching. Between tasting her earlier and now having her squeezing him so tightly, Pedro knew he wouldn’t last long. That and he hadn’t had sex in a long time. It was a miracle he lasted this long. He blamed it on his old age. “Open your eyes. I want to see you.”</p><p>Summer opened her eyes and looked up at him.</p><p>How was it fair that he was that beautiful of a man? Summer didn’t understand it.</p><p>So she did as he asked, unable to help herself when he thrust deep inside her one last time which sent her over the edge. Her nails dug into his skin and Summer cried his name as she finally came undone. She rode out her orgasm as he kept going, his thrusts growing faster and more erratic by the second.</p><p>He was close too.</p><p>This proved to be true when he moaned loudly. Louder than anyone Summer had ever been with before which was unbelievably hot. He felt Summer’s walls squeeze around him even tighter than before. His release seemed to chase her own release.</p><p>Summer felt him spill himself into her as his thrusts grew lazy, pumping himself into her.</p><p>It was soon quiet in the room and they both found themselves in a post-lovemaking haze. It was quieter than before when he whispered dirty yet still sweet things into her ear and the only other noise that could be heard was the sound of his skin slapping against hers.</p><p>Now all that could be heard was their breathing.</p><p>He remained inside her for a moment before he softened and could remove himself from her without causing her any pain or discomfort. Pedro quickly moved off of her and she only briefly felt any discomfort from the action. The discomfort was gone in an instant and she went back to their post-lovemaking haze where she couldn’t seem to gather her thoughts.</p><p>Summer’s mind was still blown and she felt stunned into silence, having no words to say to the man next to her. She didn’t really know what to say to him. Summer had never welcomed a stranger into her bed before.</p><p>Although, she wasn’t really sure if Pedro counted as a stranger. He was a friend of Sarah’s who was a friend and co-worker. Summer had also spent most of the party with him. He was more like an acquaintance than a stranger.</p><p>Even so, Summer was pretty sure that was the best sex she ever had.</p><p>Stranger or not.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter Five</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After Summer invites Pedro into her bed, she finds herself liking him more and more as they spend the early morning hours together. She knows it can only end badly but she doesn't care.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“That was…” Pedro trailed off, not really able to think after all that. He felt overwhelmingly sleepy between it being late and Summer having completely worn him out. “Good. Really good.”</p><p>Summer had already gone to the bathroom and cleaned herself up. She brought back a towel for Pedro as well and had since returned to bed.</p><p>“Aren’t you glad I asked you to come over?” Summer asked him, giving him a small smile. Pedro chuckled.</p><p>“I don’t know if I am. You’ve really gotten me into trouble, McGrath,” Pedro told her and Summer laughed. He ran a hand over his face. “Sarah’s going to kill me.”</p><p>“I’m not Sarah’s problem. Maybe my sister’s but not hers,” Summer told him and Pedro stared at her for a minute and noticed how her makeup hadn’t moved an inch since they started. Despite their earlier activities, her eyeshadow and eyeliner were perfectly in tact. “What?”</p><p>Summer noticed how he was staring at her and it made her feel self-conscious.</p><p>“You still have your makeup on,” Pedro told her observantly and Summer gave him an odd look.</p><p>“Pretty much. You didn’t really give me a chance to take it off,” Summer told him and Pedro shook his head.</p><p>“No, I mean it’s still on. I can’t believe it didn’t melt off after all that,” Pedro told her and Summer was surprised he noticed. Most guys didn’t notice stuff like that or give a shit. They just assumed that’s the way she normally looked.</p><p>“Urban Decay All-Nighter Setting Spray,” Summer told him and Pedro assumed she was talking about some sort of makeup brand. “When they say All-Nighter, they really mean All-Nighter. You can sob your heart’s content through a break up and it won’t move an inch. You could probably even go to a water park and nothing would happen.”</p><p>“You really love makeup,” Pedro stated and Summer looked back at him. “I noticed everything in the bathroom. I don’t think I’ve seen so much makeup in my life.”</p><p>“I’m sort of obsessed with it,” Summer confessed as Pedro looked at her curiously. “It’s sort of girly, isn’t it? All the makeup and clothes. I didn’t used to be that way but all the photoshoots and everything kind of got me into it.”</p><p>“All the movie sets?” Pedro added and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“No, the makeup artists on the movie sets were much too complicated and scary,” Summer informed him and she was surprised he was actually interested in what she had to say. “I never knew half the stuff they were putting on my face back then. Especially when I was on Disney Channel. You should’ve seen the weird and gaudy outfits Zendaya and I had to wear. I cringe at the memory.”</p><p>“It probably wasn’t that bad,” Pedro told her and Summer nodded.</p><p>“It definitely was that bad,” Summer said as she just laid there talking with him. It was late and they just had mind-blowing sex so she should’ve been tired but she didn’t want to sleep. She liked talking with him.</p><p>“So how did you get into makeup then?” Pedro asked her and he admired the smile that came over her face.</p><p>“It was after I did <em>Maleficent</em>,” Summer told him and Pedro vaguely remembered watching the film with his nephews. “Urban Decay made this line of different eyeshadow palettes for the movie. They gave me an entire line of makeup from the movie but I was just obsessed with those eyeshadow palettes. They had a Maleficent one and an Aurora one. It’s not that hard getting into makeup these days with the millions of makeup tutorials online but I went to Ulta Beauty around that age and they gave a 101 on the basics despite how terrifying it was.”</p><p>“Terrifying how?” Pedro asked her curiously.</p><p>“Have you ever been to Ulta Beauty?” Summer asked him. “The girls who work there are terrifyingly beautiful and their makeup is amazing. They’re scary as fuck…but they’re actually nice.”</p><p>“The customer is always right,” Pedro told her and he smirked at her. “Of course, you probably never had to work in customer service. With Disney Channel and all.”</p><p>“Disney Channel is a really fucked up workplace,” Summer told him and Pedro laughed. “You wouldn’t think so but it totally is with all their little rules and branding. I used to think all the other Disney kids let fame go to their head and that’s why they went crazy but after spending a couple years working for Disney Channel, I understand why they did.”</p><p>“Is it really that bad?” Pedro asked her and Summer nodded.</p><p>“You’re basically a Disney princess when you’re on Disney Channel. You can’t say this or that. You can’t audition for certain film roles because it doesn’t seem something like what Cece Jones would do…my character,” Summer added the last part when he cast her a curious look. “Your publicist has to send them whatever you plan to post on social media so they can make sure it’s “appropriate”. You can’t wear certain things. I almost got fired after the first season of my show for wearing a bikini to the beach. Apparently it was too sexy…a swimsuit my mom picked out.”</p><p>“Ooh…scandalous,” Pedro playfully teased and Summer rolled her eyes.</p><p>“I was fifteen and it wasn’t like it was a thong bikini,” Summer said, still feeling the need to defend herself after all these years. “I don’t know. Disney Channel was one colossal mind fuck. I couldn’t wait to get out of there.”</p><p>“You never think about that,” Pedro said softly, glancing over at her. Summer gave him a curious look. “I used to think like you said before. That all those child actors must let the fame get to their heads. I didn’t think there was a lot more to it than that.”</p><p>“I just know that someday when I have kids that I would never let them do any of it. Not, at least, until they were old enough to make the decision themselves,” Summer told him and he smiled.</p><p>“Anyways, I think that’s what I’d be doing if I wasn’t an actor.”</p><p>“What is it that?” Pedro asked her and Summer smiled at him.</p><p>“Makeup. I think I’d be a makeup artist,” Summer told him and she didn’t know why she was telling him all this. Maybe because he was so easy to talk to. Like back at the party. “I do it all the time for my friends and I just love it so much. I’d honestly probably have my own YouTube channel with makeup tutorials.”</p><p>“Really?” Pedro asked her and she nodded.</p><p>“It seems like a dream job,” Summer told him and she wondered if it sounded stupid to him.</p><p>“They actually make a living from that. It’s crazy how much they get paid.”</p><p>“Show me,” Pedro said after staring at her for a moment and Summer looked at him questioningly.</p><p>“What?” She questioned and he nodded.</p><p>“Show me how good you are.”</p><hr/><p>And that’s how Summer ended up in her bathroom with Pedro sitting on her toilet as she did his makeup at three in the morning. She had thrown on an old Arctic Monkeys concert t-shirt over her underwear while Pedro had put his boxers back on. It was definitely the weirdest post-sex activity she’d ever done with a guy.</p><p>“So then prep-priming spray, moisturizer, and facial spray,” Pedro said after Summer finished wiping the facial toner over his face. He smelled vaguely of lilac but it smelled nice and made him feel refreshed. “What’s it all for, again?”</p><p>Summer laughed.</p><p>“It’s facial toner and well, the prep-priming spray goes on before everything because it helps hydrate your skin,” Summer explained to him as Pedro listened to her. “The moisturizer goes on because, well, you should be using it, anyways. Facial toner is to help soften your skin.”</p><p>“I never really asked the makeup artists before. I just let them put whatever shit they wanted on me,” Pedro told her and Summer nodded.</p><p>“I try not to get in their way too much,” Summer told him in agreement before pulling out a box from underneath her bathroom sink. She opened it and Pedro was surprised at all the make-up in there. “I’m checking to see if I have your skin tone in foundation. I should…somewhere.”</p><p>“Why do you have so many different colors?” Pedro asked curiously and Summer shrugged.</p><p>“I’ve done a bunch of ads for Urban Decay and they always send me a bunch of stuff,” Summer informed him. “I give a lot of it to my friends but it’s still way too much. I try to keep some in case of emergencies.”</p><p>“Makeup emergencies?” Pedro asked in amusement and she nodded.</p><p>“They’re the worst,” She told him. “One of my friends plucked too much of her left brow once so my brow pencil was a life saver.”</p><p>“I could actually use a brow pencil,” Pedro joked and Summer just smiled at him before finding a foundation.</p><p>“I think this foundation matches your skin type,” Summer told him as she picked out the right color variation. She then squeezed a bit on to the back of his hand and blended it in and was delighted to see that it was the correct color. “Definitely.”</p><p>“So what kind of foundation is that? Yours?” Pedro asked and Summer shrugged.</p><p>“It’s their Naked line. I’m wearing All-Nighter,” Summer told him and he nodded. “It’s weightless and feels a lot better on your skin. Not that All-Nighter isn’t better or lighter but Naked is my favorite.”</p><p>“Why aren’t you wearing it now?” He asked her and she laughed a bit at all his questions. Tom never asked her stuff like that. He never really had an interest in her makeup. He never cared enough either. It was interesting to her about how much Pedro listened and how many questions he asked. It felt nice.</p><p>“Naked is more for a natural look. Going out grocery shopping or to grab take-out,” Summer explained to him. “All-Nighter is for parties or dates.”</p><p>“I didn’t realize there could be different foundations for different occasions,” Pedro remarked, clearly amused as Summer squeezed a small amount of foundation on to a blending sponge before sweeping it across his face.</p><p>“There are and I always make sure to get the kind with sunscreen in it. Most do now, anyways,” Summer told him as she blended the foundation into his skin. When she finished that, she reached for the primer.</p><p>“What’s that?” Pedro asked her as she squeezed a tiny dab on to her finger.</p><p>“It’s complexion primer,” She informed him. “It’s to reduce shine and minimizes pores.”</p><p>“I feel like I’m a canvas,” Pedro told her with a chuckle. She laughed too as she wiped the primer across his face. “Primer. I didn’t even know that stuff existed. I mean, they probably use it on me but I’m just on my phone most of the time.”</p><p>“There’s eyeshadow primer too,” She told him as she took a glance at her contour kit. “You don’t want contour, do you?”</p><p>“I think I just want a more natural look,” Pedro said as if he knew what he was talking about. She rolled her eyes playfully before grabbing her blush stick.</p><p>“Fine, I’ll just use blush to give you warmth,” Summer told him as she dragged the stick across his cheekbones. It didn’t show up as much on his tan skin as it did on her pale skin. “And then concealer and this one matches the foundation, I think. It’s the same number.”</p><p>Pedro watched as she uncapped the concealer and took out the wand. She swiped the wand under his eyes but didn’t go for the wrinkles near his eyes. Summer thought he looked much better with those.</p><p>“Eyeshadow primer,” Summer told him as she took out the tube. She swiped the wand across the lids of his eyes and he grimaced.</p><p>“It feels oily,” Pedro told her and she nodded.</p><p>“It sort of does but it helps the eyeshadow last longer and it’s a better base,” Summer informed him and Pedro nodded. “So there’s no creases.”</p><p>“Hey, you’re the expert. Not me,” Pedro told her and she smiled at him before picking out one of the eyeshadow palettes. She thought her honey palette suited him better. She didn’t think the cherry one would look as good on him.</p><p>“You don’t need eyeliner. Your eyes are already dark enough and definitely not mascara. You have really long lashes,” Summer observed before trying to decide on a color of eyeshadow.</p><p>“What color?”</p><p>“Fuck, that’s eyeshadow?” Pedro said as he stared at the expensive looking case. It was metallic with engraved words across it. “It looks far too pretty for little ole me.”</p><p>“This is one of my more natural palettes,” Summer told him. “Here pick a color. I need to know what other two colors to use so pick one.”</p><p>“You’re going to laugh but I really like the glittery gold one,” Pedro told her and Summer laughed. “It looks like the one you’re wearing.”</p><p>“Are you serious?” Summer questioned and he nodded.</p><p>“It stands out to me,” Pedro told her and Summer just nodded, doing as he asked. She took the eyeshadow brush and started with a lighter shade as a base.</p><p>“If that’s the one you really want,” Summer said, clearly amused by him. She started brushing the eyeshadow across his eyelids. “You know, I’ve never done this on a guy before. Most of my friends are women and I don’t imagine any boyfriends being cool with it. I don’t think I know my guy friends well enough to even think to ask.”</p><p>“Your dad never let you do it…when you were little?” Pedro asked her and she let out a laugh before shaking her head.</p><p>“No, never,” Summer said, the mere thought of her dad letting her do that was laughable. “He’s kind of a tough guy. I never even thought to ask him. I already knew what the answer would be.”</p><p>“I used to do this all the time for my sister,” Pedro said to her and Summer looked at him curiously. She tried to picture it. A smaller version of Pedro playing dress-up doll for his sister. “Her and her friends would practice makeup on me.”</p><p>“That must’ve been cute,” Summer told him and for some reason this whole putting make-up thing on him was making her even more attracted to him. It was strange to think they hadn’t known each other at the beginning of the night but now they were almost like friends.</p><p>“No, it wasn’t,” He denied. “She wasn’t as good as you are. I looked awful. I’m pretty sure my dad still has pictures somewhere back in Chile.”</p><p>“I think I’m done now,” Summer told him as she reached for the pressed powder to do quick finishing touches to his look. She took her make-up brush and the press powder that matched his foundation and concealer. The blonde then swept it across his face to finish the look off. When she was satisfied, she grabbed the setting spray.</p><p>“Close your eyes,” She instructed and Pedro did exactly as told. Summer sprayed the setting spray across his face with a couple spritz to finally hold everything in place. She then set the spray down and grabbed a mirror to show him. “There it is.”</p><p>Pedro inspected the make-up look in the mirror. He noticed he looked a bit younger without the shadows under his eyes and his pores as noticeable but his eyes were mostly drawn to the eyeshadow. He was right. Glittery gold was definitely the way to go.</p><p>“You were right. You’re really good,” Pedro said as he glanced back up at the blonde. “I look hot.”</p><p>“Thanks,” Summer said, laughing a bit. She didn’t expect him to be this way. No offense to him but she thought because he was older he’d be a little less full of life. Definitely more cynical and serious. However, Pedro was just the opposite. She didn’t think she had met anyone so free spirited. It was refreshing.</p><p>“You’d sleep with me, right? That’s how hot I look?” Pedro teased her and Summer rolled her eyes.</p><p>“I already slept with you without makeup so probably,” Summer retorted and he chuckled. He then went back to admiring the work Summer did on him. She really was good. Pedro had to give it to her and he didn’t mind sitting in her makeup chair…which was really a toilet but same difference.</p><p>With the way things had been tonight, Pedro even thought he’d let her do anything to him if she asked. She was a hard girl to say no to. Pedro only spent a night with her and he already knew that.</p><p>He didn’t want to end so maybe he was dragging it out a bit.</p><p>Little did he know that Summer was doing the same thing.</p><hr/><p>“I’ve never done this with anyone before,” Summer told Pedro as he stood in front of the mirror  and she sat on the bathroom counter while taking off their makeup. Summer’s was a bit more difficult to get off since she’d used eyeliner and mascara which were both nightmares to remove. Pedro was busy wiping the eyeshadow off.</p><p>“What? Take makeup off with a guy you just had sex with?” Pedro joked, giving her a dazzling smile that sent her heart soaring. Not just the smile but the wrinkles that appeared beside his eyes when he smiled. It gave Summer a bunch of swirling emotions.</p><p>“No, I actually meant going home with a guy I barely know,” Summer said sincerely and Pedro stared at her for a second. This wasn’t as true for him. He’d been pretty promiscuous in the past but he really put a stop to that several years ago. By either having a casual relationship or a committed one. However, he also took in account that Summer was a lot younger. “I don’t usually do that.”</p><p>“So what made you do it?” He asked her and she shrugged.</p><p>“I guess I like you,” She answered and he felt the corners of his mouth tug up into another smile. He didn’t really know why she liked him. It didn’t make sense to Pedro but he was glad she did.</p><p>“I like you too,” He told her and Summer didn’t know why those four words made her feel so giddy. Maybe because tonight was the most fun she had in a while and she hadn’t met anyone interesting until Pedro. “Fuck, it’s late.”</p><p>She supposed he had a point. It was almost four in the morning, after all. It was getting really late and Summer could see herself sleeping in until the afternoon. She probably wasn’t getting much done today and especially after how sore she felt from earlier. Summer would be content to lay in bed all day.</p><p>“Do you have to go to work today?” Summer asked him and he shook his head.</p><p>“Not until tomorrow,” He informed her and she nodded. “What about you?”</p><p>“No. I’m on vacation, remember?” Summer reminded him and he nodded. He briefly recalled her mentioning that earlier in the evening. So much had happened since that conversation that it seemed so long ago but in reality it really wasn’t. Just several hours ago.</p><p>“I should probably be heading back to Sarah’s,” Pedro mentioned and Summer couldn’t help the feeling of disappointment that rose in her. She didn’t really want him to go. Summer enjoyed tonight and she enjoyed him more importantly. She wouldn’t admit it aloud but she’d been really lonely these past few months. It been so long since she felt desired in any way and especially after the break-up. Maybe she was a little touch-starved and Pedro had made her feel anything but that tonight.</p><p>“You can stay here if you want,” Summer said nonchalantly although she didn’t exactly feel calm. In fact, she felt nervous. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she waited for his answer. Summer wanted him to say yes more than anything. “Until you have to leave later.”</p><p>“If that’s okay with you,” Pedro said after giving her a curious look. He honestly thought she’d want to kick him out as soon as they finished having sex. That she would instantly regret it and chastise herself for sleeping with him in the first place. “I don’t want to impose.”</p><p>“I don’t mind,” Summer said as she continued to pretend to be nonchalant about the whole thing.</p><p>“Okay,” Pedro finally agreed and he wasn’t exactly going to protest. It was late and he didn’t really feel like walking back to Sarah’s. He was tired and he just wanted to sleep. He was actually hoping Summer wouldn’t mind him staying over. “You know, you’re oddly okay with me staying over. Like you said before, you barely know me. I could be a murderer.”</p><p>“If you were a murderer you probably would’ve killed me after we had sex,” Summer pointed out to him, causing Pedro to laugh. “You probably wouldn’t have let me give you a makeover.”</p><p>“But not before we had sex?” Pedro questioned and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“No, why kill me before we have sex? That makes absolutely no sense,” Summer told him.</p><p>“Besides…it would end really badly for you if you killed me. A lot of bad press.”</p><p>“I wouldn’t doubt it,” Pedro said in response. “It would probably be talked about it. We’d probably be on Dateline.”</p><p>“I love Dateline,” Summer said as she practically beamed at him.  He smiled in amusement.</p><p>“Keith Morrison would probably interview you…from prison.”</p><p>“I fucking love Keith Morrison. I could really go to sleep watching Keith Morrison Dateline episodes,” Pedro told her and that might’ve made Summer like him a lot more. No one really understood her affinity for true crime except maybe Zendaya. “There probably wouldn’t just be a Dateline episode by the way. You’re too famous for just one Dateline episode. There’d probably be a bunch of miniseries on ID.”</p><p>“Then when the twenty fifth anniversary happened, there would be this three hour long special and all our friends and family would be in it,” Summer said, continuing whatever weird game they were playing. “A really old Oscar would just go on about how normal you seemed and how he couldn’t believe you turned out to be an evil asshole.”</p><p>Pedro chuckled at the thought of their imaginary murder anniversary special. Sarah wasn’t kidding when she said Summer was weird. Maybe she was but Pedro liked that about her.</p><p>“Wow, I kind of wished that I murdered you now,” Pedro joked as they both finally finished getting all the makeup off. They probably finished a while ago but got so distracted with each other that they hadn’t noticed.</p><p>“You should totally murder me,” Summer flirted and Pedro smirked at her. “But I think I could take you in all honesty.”</p><p>“Yeah?” Pedro asked in amusement.</p><p>“You’re old and I’m young. I’m probably faster than you,” Summer pointed out to him and Pedro nodded.</p><p>“Fair point.”</p><p>“So are you going to kill me?” Summer asked flirtatiously which was weird. Was she actually flirting with him by asking him if he was going to kill her? It probably would’ve chased any other man off. Past boyfriends would’ve been weirded out or turned off. Maybe it was a sign that she went home with someone crazy but Summer didn’t mind. “It would make a really good story, after all.”</p><p>“Well, before I make a Dateline special out of the two of us, you want to head back to bed?” Pedro asked her in a way that automatically told Summer that he wanted her again. Summer felt a bit warm under his intense gaze. His eyes were really beautiful. Summer always had a weakness for brown eyes.</p><p>“But we already had sex,” Summer told him. “You could just kill me now, you know.”</p><p>“I could but I think I’m more interested in you when you’re living and breathing,” Pedro informed her and Summer laughed. “All those little noises you made for me.”</p><p>Summer blushed at his remark. He might’ve been a little goofy and nerdy at the party but he was all that and way more behind closed doors. She couldn’t help but feel completely infatuated with him.</p><p>“I thought you said you were tired,” She inquired and Pedro smiled but shook his head.</p><p>“I think I could go another round,” Pedro told her and Summer felt her heart flutter as he gazed down at her. “You might actually kill me but I can swing it.”</p><p>“You’re not that old, right?” Summer teased him. “Not so old that you’d die during sex? I don’t think I’d ever have sex again if that happened.”</p><p>“I hope not,” Pedro said, chuckling at her teasing remark. “It wouldn’t be a bad way to go.”</p><p>“Except that it would traumatize me until the day I die,” Summer pointed out and Pedro smirked at her.</p><p>“At least, you’d never forget me,” Pedro retorted teasingly and Summer honestly doubted that she’d forget him even if he didn’t die on top of her. After their night together, Summer somehow knew that it wasn’t something she’d ever forget.</p><p>A part of her desperately hoped that it wouldn’t be just tonight. That she might see him again. Summer wondered if maybe she wasn’t the sort of person to have one-night stands. She quickly got a little too attached.</p><p>“I don’t think I’d forget you regardless if you died. This has been the weirdest night/morning of my life,” Summer informed him and He chuckled. “I’m serious. We had sex, I did your make-up, and then we contemplated you murdering me so we could get on Dateline together. I don’t know about you but for me, it’s by far the weirdest several hours I’ve spent with a man.”</p><p>“I mean, there’s been some weird times in my illustrious sex life but I think this is without a doubt the weirdest for me too,” Pedro said in agreement before taking her hand into his. Summer suddenly felt like she was a school girl with a crush just by the simple sweet gesture of him holding her hand.</p><p>It seemed silly since neither she or Pedro were ideal for each other.</p><p>The age gap made this all a very terrible idea and one of them or both of them would probably be canceled if anyone found out about any of this. Summer still didn’t think it felt wrong. She couldn’t remember having so much fun with someone.</p><p>“The fact that you’ve gone along with it too is pretty odd. I think most women would’ve kicked me out by now.”</p><p>“I thought about kicking you out if you did something weird,” Summer told him and Pedro raised an eyebrow.</p><p>“Something weird? I thought we both agreed this whole night has been weird,” Pedro reminded her and she shook her head.</p><p>“No, I meant if you were a little too interested in the age gap or if you played golf,” Summer said nonchalantly. She then gave him a suspicious look. “You don’t play golf, do you?”</p><p>“Golf? McGrath, do I look like I play any sort of sport to you? Well, if golf even counts as a sport. It’s kind of stupid and boring,” Pedro replied and Summer could’ve fallen in love with him right then. He really was the perfect guy. Pedro disliked golf. Summer was starting to slowly catch feelings and he just had to tell her that he thought golf was stupid. The sport Summer had grown to hate during the past three years.</p><p>“The age gap?”</p><p>“Yeah, if you wanted me to call you daddy or something,” Summer said and now it was Pedro’s turn to blush. It wasn’t as if that name hadn’t been thrown around his bedroom before but definitely not with someone who was young enough to be Pedro’s actual daughter. It felt a bit weird for her of all people to call him that.</p><p>“Do you want to call me that?” Pedro asked her hesitantly and Summer shrugged</p><p>“Not really,” Summer said nonchalantly and Pedro felt a bit relieved at that. He wasn’t sure if he would’ve been entirely comfortable if that had been the case. If Summer had only gone home with him because she had a daddy thing. “Honesty, I would’ve probably kicked you out more if you really did play golf. That’s a major turn off for me.”</p><p>“Golf is a major turn off for you?” Pedro asked in amusement, putting the whole daddy topic to rest. “I know it’s boring but it’s also a bit random.”</p><p>“You don’t even know the half of it,” Summer complained, making Pedro want to laugh. She was completely adorable. “My ex used to play golf all the fucking time. You don’t want to know how mind-numbing watching hours and hours of golf is. It wasn’t just watching him play but then watching it on TV too. It was fucking torture.”</p><p>“It does sound pretty fucking boring,” Pedro said in agreement although he was slowly starting to see why she was completely turned off by golf. It made sense to him. “Well, I’ve never been more happy to not give a shit about golf. Is someone not knowing anything about golf a turn on then? You know, since golf is a huge turn off?”</p><p>“I guess it is,” Summer told him with a small smile as he grinned at her. She knew he was only trying to get her back in bed and Summer was okay with falling for it.</p><p>“So no golf, no daddy, and oh…I have to murder you afterwards too,” Pedro listed off and Summer nodded as if this was entirely logical. “Am I forgetting anything else?”</p><p>“No, I think you got it all,” Summer assured him with a teasing look on her face.</p><p>“Good,” Pedro told her before leaning down and closing the gap between them. She melted into the kiss. Summer’s eyes fluttered shut as he stood in between her thighs while she sat on the bathroom counter. She was left a bit breathless from the intensity of the kiss as well as the feeling of his hands on her.</p><p>Summer knew it was well into the morning and she definitely should be getting some sleep but a part of her was afraid that when she woke up, he would be gone and the last several hours would just be a dream. She didn’t really want it to be a dream. Summer knew inviting him into her house was a huge mistake. She would either damn herself or damn him in the public eye and they’d both be crucified if anyone knew.</p><p>However, Summer couldn’t deny how good his lips felt against hers or the way his touch made her feel.</p><p>It couldn’t be so wrong if none of it felt wrong, right?</p><hr/><p>“Fuck…” Pedro breathed as they laid in bed next to each other. They just finished round two of the night…or morning. Summer was burrowed in the sheets next to him, feeling completely and totally content to just lie there for the foreseeable future. It was usually drafty on the second floor of her house during the winter months but she didn’t feel it after Pedro spent the past hour warming her up again.</p><p>“Are you tired yet?” Summer asked him and Pedro laughed before nodding.</p><p>“A bit,” Pedro admitted as he glanced over at her. He was struck by how absolutely beautiful she looked under the morning light. It was a contrast against how she looked under the moonlight earlier with her face decorated with sparkly eyeshadow and makeup. Her face was bare of any makeup now and he was a bit infatuated with the way the morning light seemed to frame her face in a soft glow. “You?”</p><p>“I’m probably going to sleep for twelve hours if I’m being perfectly honest,” Summer answered honestly. “I’m really exhausted and I’m also going to be sore tomorrow. No thanks to you.”</p><p>“Sorry about that,” Pedro said although he didn’t look that sorry. Summer rolled her eyes before Pedro’s cocky expression turned into one of concern. “But I wasn’t too rough, was I?”</p><p>“Nope,” Summer assured him as she smiled at the concerned look on his face. He was a lot more caring that she would’ve originally pegged him as. Of course, she didn’t really know him but it was seldom that a guy really cared that much. “And if you were then I liked it.”</p><p>“Right,” Pedro said to himself as he nodded and struggled to collect his thoughts. It was a bit difficult to think clearly after Summer…well, everything about Summer. She seemed to be good at making him lose his train of thought. “What are you doing?”</p><p>Pedro only asked her when he noticed that she’d picked up the TV remote from her nightstand. Summer perplexed him. She was definitely weird but Pedro liked that about her. Summer was nothing like he ever could’ve imagined.</p><p>“All that talk about murdering me makes me want to watch some true crime,” Summer told him as she finally found the show she was looking for. <em>Snapped</em>. “Are you still going to murder me?”</p><p>“Nah…” Pedro answered, giving Summer a fond smile. “I think I like you too much.”</p><p>“Well, the feeling’s mutual,” Summer told him as they both turned their gaze to the giant TV mounted on Summer’s bedroom wall. Pedro wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer to him. Summer laughed in surprise at the gesture. She didn’t think cuddling was the norm of a one night stand but she didn’t mind it at the same time either.</p><p>“They had the perfect marriage and all seemed well in the Oakley family,” The narrator said in a ominous tone. “But sometimes a marriage behind closed doors is anything but a fairytale. It wouldn’t take long before someone…snapped.”</p><p>“It’s going to be the wife,” Pedro told her as she remained snuggled against him. It was strange cuddling with someone she barely knew but it didn’t feel like she barely knew him. She spent the past ten hours with him so that equaled, what? Maybe two dates? That was enough to warrant cuddling and Summer actually liked it. Maybe it was the result of not having been touched by a man in so long.</p><p>“Sometimes it’s the husband,” Summer pointed out and Pedro scoffed.</p><p>“Not on Snapped. It’s always the wife on Snapped,” Pedro reminded her and Summer shrugged. He had a point. Usually it was the wife on <em>Snapped</em>. It was always the husband on <em>Married with Secrets </em>or <em>Betrayed</em>.</p><p>“Why do I always kind of root for the wife if she’s the killer but I always want the husband to rot in prison if he’s the killer?” Summer wondered aloud and Pedro chuckled. “Why do I find them cool and a little bit fun? Psychopathic women are somehow cooler than psychopathic men.”</p><p>“Probably because of centuries of men doing fucked up shit to women. It’s refreshing to see the same being done to them,” Pedro added and Summer supposed he had a point. “Fuck, we sound like assholes.”</p><p>“Psychopathic assholes,” Summer corrected and he nodded.</p><p>“Those are the worst kind,” Pedro told her and she just smiled as they continued watching the show. She was nestled into his side and she honestly didn’t mind it one bit. It might’ve been weird watching a true crime series early in the morning after having two rounds of sex with a man almost twice her age but Summer didn’t really care. Cuddling with him was probably weird too but Summer felt much too cozy to force herself to keep a distance between herself and him.</p><p>She started to find herself desperately hoping this wasn’t a one time thing either.</p><p>It would’ve been so cruel to have the most amazing night with an equally amazing man just to have it all torn away from her. Summer hoped she wasn’t reading too much into her time with Pedro but she thought there was a good chance that this could go beyond a random heat of the moment thing.</p><p>That she might even give him her number.</p><p>Summer just hoped he felt the same way.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter Six</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Summer and Pedro come up with a decision during the morning after while struggling with their conflicting emotions over the situation they both invented for themselves.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Summer woke up hours later, thinking that she’d be alone. For a moment, she completely forgot where she was. It usually happened if she didn’t go to bed until late. She slept hard and felt disoriented until she woke up some hours later. However, memories of the night before came flooding through Summer’s mind.</p><p>Sarah’s party, Pedro, and everything that happened with him since they met at the party.</p><p>It was a magical night and Summer was a bit disappointed it had all come to an end. She knew she shouldn’t have been. There were a million reasons why it was probably bad she went home with Pedro. If anyone saw them leave the party together it would probably be bad.</p><p>Pedro might not have been in the public eye too often but Summer was. She captured interest wherever she went because of her Disney Channel past. People watched her with obsessive interest, waiting for her to mess up and become like all her Disney Channel predecessors. So far, she and Zendaya managed to keep up their good girl image except for Summer’s somewhat flightiness regarding her personal life. She was known to go from boyfriend to boyfriend. Summer had always been indecisive before Tom and she also worked a lot so relationships were never something she’d managed to keep for very long.</p><p>Maybe she shouldn’t get so caught up in Pedro.</p><p>It was clearly a one night stand which Summer never had before. One night stands didn’t typically lead into anything more, right? She was an adult now and this was an adult thing. She shouldn’t get attached but in all honesty, Summer was the kind of person who developed attachments to the pretty boxes her makeup came in.</p><p>Pedro was forty-four and probably had more one night stands than Summer could’ve possibly imagined.</p><p>Summer didn’t want to be immature about this or silly. She, as an adult, decided to bring a man, another adult and who she was very attracted to, home and they had consensual sex. He never indicated he was interested in anything else and Summer didn’t want to be the silly little girl who got her feelings hurt when he inevitably took his leave.</p><p>It was why she fully expected him to be gone when she woke up. She definitely didn’t expect to find his arm wrapped around her securely and him practically spooning her. Summer opened her eyes but didn’t turn around, she just stared at his arm that was wrapped around her.</p><p>They’d fallen asleep at some point while watching <em>Snapped</em>. Summer didn’t even remember what the episode was about. She supposed they were both tired from the party as well as their night together.</p><p>Summer felt his breath against her neck and figured he was still asleep. She still couldn’t help the butterflies and blushing as she remained wrapped in his warm embrace. She missed this. Just being held.</p><p>It was sort of pathetic but Summer had been lonely the past several months. Especially after coming out of such a long and committed relationship abruptly with no warning. She knew staying single was important and it was a good experience for her but Summer still missed having someone to come home to after spending months shooting on location. Whatever hotel room or house she came home to always felt emptier after Tom.</p><p>She frowned.</p><p>Maybe this encounter with Pedro had been a mistake. It was bringing a lot of bad memories up for her and making her yearn for the comfort that came with companionship. Having a one night stand was nowhere as easy as the movies made it seem.</p><p>Summer decided then that she didn’t think she would have another one night stand. Maybe she wasn’t the type of person for it. It just made her feel a bit worse than if she’d gone home without him. Not to say that she regretted it because the sex had been great and she had fun with Pedro but it just made her feel lonelier to know that he would get up and leave then everything would be the same as if he was never there.</p><p>Before she had anymore time to dwell on her night with Pedro and the consequences that came with it, she felt him move behind her. Her heart skipped a beat at the anticipation as to what would happen next.</p><p>Would he regret it?</p><p>Would he want to leave right away?</p><p> Would he want to stay?</p><p>Summer didn’t really know how these type of things went in the morning after…or the afternoon after for that matter. She was pretty positive that it was well into the afternoon.</p><p>Pedro groaned as he finally removed his arm from Summer. He stretched and Summer finally turned around to look at him, trying to keep the sheet around her. She knew it was silly to worry about the fact that she was naked since he’d seen her naked last night but Pedro was still a guy she’d only met yesterday. It wasn’t like he was a boyfriend.</p><p>“What time is it?” Pedro asked Summer as he glanced over at her. He smiled in amusement when he noticed how she clutched the sheet securely around herself. It was kind of adorable.</p><p>“I’m not sure. I don’t really remember where I left my phone,” Summer told him and he nodded. She started observing things about him that she hadn’t really observed about him in dark rooms with dim lighting the night before. His hair was dark, yes, but under natural lighting she could see the shimmer of gray in his hair and beard. Somehow it made him even hotter to Summer which probably wasn’t good for her current state of mind.</p><p>“It’s probably late,” Pedro guessed, judging by the fact that he and Summer probably slept for a long time. It didn’t seem like morning light they were resting under. “Fuck…what a night. My whole body’s exhausted.”</p><p>“You?” Summer questioned teasingly, referring to the soreness she felt. “I feel like I can’t move. I’m pretty sure you hit my cervix last night.”</p><p>“Are you okay?” Pedro asked her out of a concern, a small frown on his face. “You didn’t say anything.”</p><p>“I was kind of distracted,” Summer admitted, blushing a bit. “And I’ll be fine. It’s not that bad. I just need an Ibuprofen.”</p><p>She was honestly a bit sore but nothing too severe. She likened it to the mild cramps she’d get from her period. Nothing alarming and what quickly vanished after an Ibuprofen and a hot shower.</p><p>“I might need one too,” Pedro told her as Summer laughed. “My muscles aren’t what they used to be. I think I did more than what I was supposed to last night.”</p><p>“Already regretting it?” Summer asked him, her tone was teasing but she secretly fretted that he actually did regret last night.</p><p>Pedro stared at her for a moment, noticing that she looked exactly her age without all the makeup and glamorous clothing. She definitely made him feel old but he wouldn’t say he regretted last night.</p><p>They were both consenting adults, right?</p><p> It wasn’t as though he did anything wrong and he liked her a lot. However, with a well rested mind, he was aware that he probably didn’t make the smartest decision in going home with her. Pedro was older and he knew better but she seemed to have driven all sense out of him last night in between her teasing smiles and the way she looked at him with her cornflower blue eyes.</p><p>The older actor had done a lot of stupid things in his life and he was wondering if last night had been one of them.</p><p>He then smiled at the blonde before shaking his head.</p><p>“I don’t regret it but I just don’t get what you see in an old guy like me, kid,” Pedro told her and Summer wrinkled her nose in distaste as he referred to her as a kid. She really hated that.</p><p>“I’m not a kid,” Summer told him.</p><p>She really didn’t like people referring to her as a kid. Everyone treated her like a child in this industry because they were so used to her being a child from early on in her career. It was difficult getting rid of her Disney Channel past but Summer was just starting to feel like she was being taken seriously as both an actor and as an adult. Hence why Pedro’s remark didn’t exactly make her feel good.</p><p>“You’re not a kid?” Pedro questioned doubtfully, giving her an amused smile. “You’re an adult?”</p><p>“Obviously,” Summer retorted and Pedro smirked as he then yanked the bed sheet off her. She gasped in surprise before hastily pulling the sheet back up. Pedro laughed at her as if she were amusing to him. She glared at him.</p><p>“Because, in case you forgot, I might’ve seen you naked last night,” Pedro reminded her and Summer blushed. “An adult would probably remember that.”</p><p>“No offense but I barely know you,” Summer told him honestly. It was true. It wasn’t like he was her boyfriend or anything and had seen her naked a million times. “I’ll have you know that I don’t often allow strange men into my bed.”</p><p>“Strange men, huh? I guess I’m honored to be the first then,” Pedro told her jokingly. Summer shook her head.</p><p>“And if I’m such a kid, you didn’t seem to have much of a problem with fucking me,” Summer pointed out to him and Pedro nodded slowly. She had a good point. One he couldn’t really argue against.</p><p>“That’s fair,” Pedro admitted. He was older than her and probably knew better. Pedro could’ve brushed off her advances but he didn’t. He never claimed to be a saint and Summer flirting with him all night flattered him beyond belief.</p><p>It felt nice to have the attention of such a beautiful, intelligent young woman when he’d been fairly lonely the past year. Between work and everything else in his life, it hadn’t left much time for relationships or even just getting back out into the dating world. It had also been a long time since he had sex so Pedro’s self control had been worn down by the time Summer showed up to the party and gave him all the attention he’d desperately been seeking.</p><p>“Are you going to leave now?” Summer asked him bluntly and Pedro gave her a confused look.</p><p>“Do you want me to leave?” He asked her, wondering if this was her finally kicking him out of her house. He’d been waiting for her to kick him out since after they had sex the first time. Just waiting for her to come upon the realization that he was old and she’d made a mistake. Summer shrugged.</p><p>“I don’t know,” She said awkwardly. “I thought the guy usually left before the girl woke up.”</p><p>“I’m not an asshole,” Pedro told her and he gave her an amused look like he’d never met anyone like her before. Summer didn’t favor the way he made her feel ridiculous. Well, excuse her if she didn’t bring home a different guy every night. “Are you basing this off some sort of movie you’ve seen? Where the woman wakes up to an empty bed and no guy? I mean, I know assholes like that but real life isn’t Hollywood, kid.”</p><p>“I told you that I haven’t done anything like this before,” Summer said hurriedly, blushing again and causing Pedro to chuckle. “I don’t know how it works.”</p><p>“I’m surprised. I really am,” Pedro told her as he continued to tease her. “The way you seduced me last night, I figured you were a pro.”</p><p>“I’m a woman. It’s not like I have to try hard,” Summer retorted, causing Pedro to smirk. He liked how witty and sassy she was. In fact, it made him even more attracted to her which he wished he hadn’t felt. She was still way too young for him. “So you do this a lot then?”</p><p>“Are you slut-shaming me, McGrath?” Pedro said, feigning hurt and Summer rolled her eyes. For a man almost twice her age, he acted like a child. “That’s rude…but I’ve done this the normal amount of times a single guy my age has. Just not in a while. I’ve been busy with work lately and there’s a very small dating pool when you’re in your forties. Everyone’s mostly married.”</p><p>“Not for guys,” Summer told him and he gave her a curious look. “Men sleep with younger women all the time. In fact, men your age hardly sleep with women their own age. They always go younger.”</p><p>“I’ve actually never been with a younger woman. Not one more than seven years younger,” Pedro said defensively and now it was Summer’s turn to smirk. “I’m not one of those sleazy asshole actors who sleeps with women half their age just because they can.”</p><p>“You do realize who you’re talking to, right?” Summer asked him with a raised eyebrow and it seemed as though Pedro forgot just who he went home with last night. He stared at her for a moment until he remembered that Summer was a woman nearly half his age and he was an actor.</p><p>“Shit, you’re right,” Pedro said, running a hand over his face. “You’re twenty-three and I slept with you. That’s an age difference of…what? Twenty-“</p><p>“Twenty-one years,” Summer finished as she looked at him completely unfazed by the age difference. Pedro took a deep breath and nodded. “Maybe you <em>are</em> a sleazy actor who sleeps with younger women.”</p><p>Yeah, Pedro was definitely a hypocrite.</p><p>For all his disgust tossed at those old rich guys with impossibly young wives on their arms, Pedro had almost no hesitation before jumping into bed with Summer. He didn’t really know what he’d been thinking or maybe he had trouble thinking around this woman in particular.</p><p>Maybe he was just the same, after all.</p><p>“Oh my god. You’re right,” Pedro said, trying to process this information. Was he the same as all those men? He really hoped not.</p><p>“If it helps, I’ll be twenty-four next month,” Summer said nonchalantly but judging by the unwavering smirk on her face, she meant to tease him. It was like she knew that new information would only annoy him. Pedro playfully glared at her.</p><p>“Ha ha. That’s very funny,” Pedro said sarcastically and Summer laughed. He gave her a curious look a second later as a thought occurred to him. “What about you? Why are we here? Isn’t there a whole line of age appropriate men who you could’ve gone home with?”</p><p>“I guess,” Summer said as she shrugged. In all honesty, she didn’t care much about age. Well, she did but she seemed to throw all logic regarding age out the window the more she talked to Pedro. It didn’t seem to matter as much in the grand scheme of things. Not to Summer, at least.</p><p>“You guess?” Pedro asked in amusement. She was funny to him even when she wasn’t trying to be. “You don’t sound really enthusiastic.”</p><p>“You say the dating pool is small in your forties but it’s too big in your twenties,” Summer confessed to Pedro who supposed she had a point. “Too many idiots and too many assholes. It’s hard to find a nice guy and then you think you found a nice guy but he’s really just another asshole.”</p><p>“Ouch…” Pedro said, wondering who did Summer in. More than likely the ex she mentioned last night. The one who played golf.</p><p>“Is this normal?” Summer abruptly asked as she gave him a curious look. Pedro stared at her for a moment. Not sure what she meant. “Playing twenty questions during a one night stand?”</p><p>“I don’t know. Do you want this to be a one night stand?” Pedro asked her and he more than likely figured she would say yes. He wasn’t stupid. He didn’t think there was much someone Summer’s age wanted to do with someone his age.</p><p>“Do <em>you</em> want this to be a one night stand?” Summer retorted, refusing to be the first one to answer that question. She didn’t want to embarrass herself. He chuckled.</p><p>“Very mature,” Pedro deadpanned before answering her question. “We can see each other again if you want. It might not be a great idea and I don’t know why you’d want to see me again but this doesn’t have to be a one night stand.”</p><p>“Really?” Summer asked shyly and he smiled at her before nodding. His brown eyes gazed into her blue ones and Summer felt her heart skip a beat. It was true. She really liked him and would’ve liked to see him again. Summer didn’t want this to be a one time thing. It was probably a stupid idea but Summer still liked him at the end of the day.</p><p>“I’m not an asshole. I didn’t come here just for sex,” Pedro told her and Summer believed him. She knew that was probably true. They didn’t just have sex for the entirety of his stay at her house. They talked, watched TV, and he’d even gotten a makeover. That’s not what someone did who just wanted sex and nothing else. “If you want, we can see each other again. I really wouldn’t mind that.”</p><p>“I thought you didn’t want to be one of those sleazy old actors who sleep with women half their age?” Summer asked him and Pedro gave her a fond look, giving her a grin.</p><p>“Well, I figure I’ve already slept with you so there’s really nothing I can do about it now,” Pedro joked and Summer smiled back at him.</p><p>“You’re an old sleazy actor for good now?” Summer teased him and he nodded.</p><p>“It seems like it,” Pedro said although he still couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact that Summer didn’t seem deterred from his suggestion that they see each other again. It didn’t make sense to him but he wasn’t exactly going to protest it.</p><p>“Are you going to join the ranks of other old sleazy actors by becoming an Instagram boyfriend?” Summer continued to tease him and Pedro was loving every second of it. “We’ll go to Coachella and you’ll look bored out of your fucking mind during Ariana Grande’s set.”</p><p>“Are you seriously drawing inspiration from Leonardo DiCaprio’s love life?” Pedro questioned, struggling to hold in his laughter.</p><p>“Of course,” Summer said because it was really all she could base anything off of. She had little knowledge of anyone else in a relationship with a huge age gap. “But jokes aside, I wouldn’t mind seeing you again either.”</p><p>“Well, I guess it’s settled then,” Pedro stated. He didn’t want to admit it but he was glad she wanted to see him again. His night with Summer didn’t have to end right then and there. He was right before when he said it was more than likely a bad idea but what was so wrong about it? They were just making plans to see each other again.</p><p>She was an adult and he was an adult. It was perfectly fine. He just didn’t know why he kept having to convince himself of that fact.</p><p>Pedro moved in to close the gap between them with a kiss but Summer quickly dodged his lips. He looked at her in confusion, thinking that maybe she changed her mind, when she shook her head. She gave him an embarrassed look.</p><p>“I haven’t brushed my teeth yet,” Summer informed him and Pedro just stared at her as though she were insane.</p><p>“So? Neither have I,” Pedro said in response before he moved in to kiss her again. Summer moved away yet again much to Pedro’s amusement and frustration.</p><p>“I need to brush my teeth,” Summer repeated before finally getting out of bed to reach for her discarded shirt on the floor which she quickly threw on. Pedro watched in amusement as she searched for her panties. It took her all of a minute before she looked back at him. Pedro who smirked smugly at her with her panties in hand.</p><p>Summer made a grab for them when Pedro moved his hand back. She glared at the older actor who lacked the maturity she thought an older man would have. He wasn’t anything like she thought he’d be. Summer was still deciding whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.</p><p>“One kiss,” Pedro requested, indicating she could have her panties for one kiss. Summer couldn’t believe the audacity of him. He was really unbelievable.</p><p>“Are you serious?” Summer questioned and he nodded, his smirk unwavering.</p><p>“Completely,” He confirmed and Summer sighed heavily, rolling her eyes before reluctantly leaning down to kiss him. He then surprised her by pulling her into his lap the moment their lips met, causing her to let out a squeal of surprise against his lips.</p><p>Pedro deepened the kiss despite Summer’s embarrassment over morning breath. She really couldn’t be annoyed or mad about anything as she melted into the kiss. He could kind of drive any sensible thought out of her head. He finally pulled away after a moment, watching the stunned look on her face that quickly morphed back into annoyance.</p><p>“I hope you’re happy,” She told him and Pedro gave her a deeply satisfied look. Summer might’ve pretended to be mad but in all honesty, she found him to be charming and hilarious with his ridiculous antics. He wordlessly handed her the pair of panties which Summer quickly took.</p><p>“I’m very happy,” Pedro said smugly and Summer rolled her eyes again before getting up from the bed to head towards the bathroom. He watched her leave, feeling a wave of happiness come over him at the thought that this went very well.</p><p>Maybe there were a couple things that were difficult about this situation but not everything was.</p><p>Not this part, at least.</p><p>There were certain things that felt very right about this. It was going to be impossible pretending that nothing was wrong but Pedro knew not everything was black and white. Some things in life could be gray and this thing with Summer fell into that gray area.</p><p>A <em>very</em> gray area.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter Seven</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Summer and Tom </p><p>All the years I've given is just shit we're dividing up<br/>Showed you all of my hiding spots<br/>I was dancing when the music stopped<br/>And in the disbelief, I can't face reinvention<br/>I haven't met the new me yet<br/>There'll be happiness after you<br/>But there was happiness because of you<br/>Both of these things can be true</p><p>-Happiness by Taylor Swift(Evermore)</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So sadly no Pedro in this chapter. This chapter is a flashback chapter of Summer and Tom's relationship throughout the years. It's a really long one that ended up being way longer than I planned but I felt it was necessary to really understand Summer and Tom and how Summer's kind of grown up from her Tom days. It took me forever because I really just want to get back to present day with Pedro but this chapter's super important and I finally finished it so thanks for being patient.</p><p>Thank you for all the reviews and kudos. I'm so glad everyone's loving the story. It really means the world to me.</p><p>So I know that I said that Cowboy Like Me inspired Summer and Pedro but Happiness also inspired Summer and Tom. I've been listening to Evermore nonstop because it really inspires me to write. Same with Folklore. I don't why those two albums are so inspiring to me. </p><p>Also there's mention of both Summer and Natalie's exes in this chapter who are celebrities and it might paint them in a negative light but I don't know them and I'm not saying the depiction of them is accurate. It's just for the sake of the story so don't take it to heart and it's not more bashing. It's just for the story.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>2015</strong>
</p><p>“Summer, why can't you be…I don’t know…single?” Natalie told her little sister as they walked across set. Nineteen-year-old Summer was visiting her sister and brother-in-law on the set of <em>Captain America: Civil War </em>which was bound to be the MCU’s biggest blockbuster yet. She had some time off after filming an indie film and before she was set to film a Richard Linklater film. Summer thought she’d see what Natalie and Chris were up to.</p><p>“I <em>was </em>single,” Summer tried to tell her sister but Natalie scoffed. The McGrath sisters continued walking, drawing some eyes where they were. It was hard for them not to get attention when out in public with each other. They joined the list of other famous siblings and they also looked so much alike between their blonde hair, the shape of their lips, and their nose.</p><p>The only differences between them were their eyes and height. Summer’s eyes were a cornflower blue color while Natalie’s eyes were a jade green color. Natalie also stood at a height of about 5’3 while Summer was much taller at 5’8. It was a bit amusing to those who knew them since Natalie was the older one yet Summer towered over her. It seemed Summer took after their father more in the height department.</p><p>“You were single for three weeks. That’s barely being single,” Natalie told Summer who tried to brush off her sister’s criticism. Summer had just broken up with her boyfriend of one year. Well, maybe she didn’t break up with him. Technically she was dumped.  “I’ve barely processed the fact that you and Matty are done yet now you have a new boyfriend. What’s up with you and musicians, by the way?”</p><p>“I feel like it’s a good mourning period,” Summer answered nonchalantly as they passed all the trailers on set. One which contained a whole camp of trailers. Summer assumed it was RDJ’s camp. “Three weeks isn’t too long or short.”</p><p>“It’s definitely too short,” Natalie argued, shaking her head at the teenager. “Although I have to say I’m glad you and Matty aren’t together anymore. He was really bad for you.”</p><p>“Nat…” Summer tried to say but her sister gave her a serious look.</p><p>“I’m serious, Summer. Not only was he too old for you but he had a lot of problems you shouldn’t have had to deal with,” Natalie reminded her much to Summer’s dismay and annoyance. “Breaking up with you was the most selfless thing that guy ever did.”</p><p>“Thanks for being so supportive,” Summer said sarcastically and Natalie sighed. She knew that came out wrong. “I just got dumped by my boyfriend of one year. Everyone’s saying I told you so and I guess my sister is too.”</p><p>“Sorry,” Natalie apologized as she looked up at her younger sister. “I just worried about you when you were with him. He smoked weed all the time, drank all the time, partied all the time, and I just thought he was a bad influence on you.”</p><p>“You sound like such a goody two shoes,” Summer informed her sister as she raised an eyebrow at her. “You know, when I was staying with you and Chris, I found an old bong in a box inside the closet. I’m guessing it belonged to him since the idea of you smoking pot is a literal pipe dream. Don’t judge me for my taste in men since your husband used to be a stoner. In fact, I think your ex-husband was a stoner too. Beloved Adam always gave me that impression. God, I miss him.”</p><p>“Okay, I see your point,” Natalie admitted, glaring at her sister. “And leave Chris alone. He stopped when Alex was born because he’s a responsible father. Also, your jokes about Adam aren’t funny. I know you, Mom, and Dad threw a celebratory party when we got divorced.”</p><p>Summer smirked at her sister and it was true. She had absolutely disliked her former brother-in-law. Before Chris, Natalie had been in a relationship with Adam Levine for a number of years. Natalie and Adam met when Summer was only eight-years-old so she’d seen a lot of Adam unfortunately. Her sister and the frontman of Maroon 5 got married before divorcing just two years later. Natalie never said why exactly but no one questioned it. No one who knew Natalie really liked them together. Not even Summer who always found her ex brother-in-law to be arrogant and condescending.</p><p>It was a godsend when Natalie met Chris who was the exact opposite of Adam.</p><p>Summer adored Chris and he was like the older brother she never had. Chris was the best and Summer was so happy for her sister. So happy that Natalie met someone who was as perfect for her as Chris was. She truly deserved it.</p><p>“So Matty wasn’t exactly a role model. Neither am I,” Summer tried to tell her sister. “And he dumped me because apparently I’m too childish to understand his problems.”</p><p>“You <em>are</em> too childish to understand his problems,” Natalie pointed out, referring to the fact that Matty did harder drugs that marijuana. Stuff that she didn’t want her sister to be anywhere around. She was relieved Summer’s ex finally got the sense to do the responsible adult thing and end it with Summer. “Summer, it wasn’t fair for him to put all of that on you in the first place.”</p><p>“Well, I’m over it now so no worries,” Summer promised her and Natalie rolled her eyes at the giddy expression on her little sister’s face. It was just like her sister to be heartbroken over her break-up for two seconds before gushing about a new boyfriend. The last boyfriend becoming nothing but a forgotten time in Summer’s life. “Harry’s amazing. We like the same music, the same movies, and he’s hilarious…and just cool but not in a pretentious way like Matty was. He’s a lot more easy-going.”</p><p>“And he also has million of fangirls who will likely murder you now that you’re dating a member of a boy band,” Natalie reminded her and Summer rolled her eyes, not taking her sister seriously.</p><p>“It’s easier to ignore bloodthirsty fangirls when you have no social media presence. Thank god I deleted all my social media accounts when I left Disney. I don’t even get to see death threats. How exciting is that?”</p><p>“I mean, he’s really in the public eye, Summer. I know you are too but it’s a lot. It’s crazy,” Natalie tried to tell her, wanting her sister to think rationally instead of just falling in love with the next guy. She felt like her sister fell in love every five seconds. Not to say it was actually falling in love. Natalie knew better than that and figured that Summer just became easily infatuated one guy after the next. She really wished her sister wasn’t as insane as she was but she wouldn’t be Summer if she wasn’t. “This is camping outside his apartment crazy and following the two of you down a street with cameras crazy. Neither you and I are equipped to deal with that level of craziness.”</p><p>“What’s that thing Grandma always said?” Summer told her sister who looked at her in confusion. “When you love someone, you make it work. Relationships have all these little complications and if you really love someone, you just push past all that.”</p><p>“I’m pretty sure when Grandma was talking about complications, she was talking about grandpa being overseas during the war,” Natalie deadpanned, shaking her head at her sister. “She wasn’t referring to a popstar from the biggest boy band in the world and all his crazy fans. And love? Summer, you don’t love this guy. You’ve only been dating him for a month.”</p><p>“I’m not like you, Natalie. I don’t have to weigh the pros and cons while slowly vetting them like I’m performing a background check on them,” Summer retorted as her sister continued staring at her in disbelief. “I’m not a psychopath.”</p><p>“I’m not a psychopath! Just because I’m careful doesn’t mean I’m a psychopath,” Natalie argued a little too harshly before receiving looks from crew members passing by. She blushed before lowering her voice. “It’s better than breaking up with one guy who you were madly in love with before jumping into the arms of another guy who you’re madly in love with. It’s like the last guy doesn’t even become an afterthought.”</p><p>“I don’t fall in love with every guy I meet,” Summer denied and Natalie scoffed.</p><p>“Okay, tell that to Michael, Jared, Ryan, Zack, James, Lucas, Matty, and now Harry,” Natalie said as she listed off all Summer’s boyfriends. She wasn’t sure if some even counted as actual boyfriends. More like flings that barely lasted a couple weeks before they either got annoyed with Summer’s work schedule or Summer found something wrong with them which was almost always. “You’ve fallen in love with so many guys that maybe you should be a songwriter. You’d probably give Taylor Swift a run for her money.”</p><p>“Are you calling me a slut?” Summer questioned and Natalie sighed before shaking her head.</p><p>“No, not a slut,” Natalie told her as she gave her a sister an apologetic look. “I just think that you jump into relationships without thinking. I’m just afraid you’ll get hurt.”</p><p>“Well, thanks for your concern but I’m an adult now. I can take care of myself,” Summer told Natalie, her tone a bit softer than before. She knew her sister meant well. “You don’t have to baby me anymore. Mom and Dad don’t.”</p><p>Natalie laughed.</p><p>“Mom and Dad never babied you,” Natalie told her sister. “They just let you do what you wanted because they lacked the energy to discipline you. Where was that lack of energy when I was a kid?”</p><p>“You were the disciplinarian, I guess. They didn’t really have to do anything else,” Summer told her sister and Natalie shrugged. “My sister/babysitter.”</p><p>“Just promise me you won’t do anything stupid,” Natalie requested of her sister. “Like, getting knocked up…or eloped in Vegas. Just try and take things a little slower with this guy.”</p><p>“I have an IUD so I think I’m good,” Summer told her sister which didn’t really make Natalie feel any better. “Just relax, Natalie. You don’t have to spend every second of the day worrying about me. I’m fine.”</p><p>“I’ll never stop worrying about you,” Natalie told her, shaking her head at her crazy sister. “I don’t think we’d be us if I didn’t worry and you didn’t drive me crazy.”</p><p>The two sisters shared a laugh and they both had to admit that life never ceased to be interesting with the two of them constantly bickering. Summer with her free-spirited nature and Natalie with her practical one. The two sisters, although close, couldn’t be anymore unlike each other.</p><p>“What are you two ladies up to?”</p><p>Summer and Natalie turned and noticed none other than Robert Downey jr. sitting at a table just to the left of them. He had a camp of trailers set up. Summer thought he must’ve had, at least, three which made sense since he was RDJ, after all. Robert was the definition of Hollywood. That much could be seen from his camp of trailers surrounding what looked like a garden with a table in the center of it where he must’ve been having lunch.</p><p>“Nothing. Just a sisterly chat,” Natalie told him and Summer’s attention was drawn to someone sitting across from Robert.</p><p>It was a boy who looked to be around her age.</p><p>Summer’s attention was drawn because it just wasn’t any random boy but a cute one. She only noticed him because his eyes were glued to her the moment she noticed Robert sitting there. He was good-looking which caught Summer’s notice but he was also somehow adorable at the same time. He had these big brown Bambi eyes that initially caught Summer’s interest.</p><p>She loved brown eyes.</p><p>They were her weakness.</p><p>His brunette hair was a bit messy but in a cute, disheveled way. Summer noticed how he blushed and quickly averted his eyes when he finally realized Summer was staring back at him. She smiled to herself and looked back at Robert.</p><p>The boy really was cute.</p><p>“Looks like the McGrath sisters are up to no good,” Robert remarked, giving them a teasing smile. Natalie rolled her eyes playfully.</p><p>“I can guarantee you that Summer and I are up to nothing,” Natalie told her longtime co-star. Robert smirked as he glanced over at the younger McGrath sister.</p><p>“And how did you manage to get on set, young lady?” Robert questioned and Summer smiled back at him. She’d known Robert for a long time now. Since she was around thirteen when her sister first started working for Marvel. He found her Disney Channel stardom amusing and fascinating and Robert never ceased teasing her about it. Summer actually didn’t mind it. Not coming from him. “I thought they were keeping everything locked tight around here.”</p><p>“I signed a bunch of papers. That’s how,” Summer explained and Robert nodded.</p><p>“Well, it’s good to see you. I haven’t seen you since the premiere,” Robert complimented, referring to Summer attending the <em>Age of Ultron</em> premiere a couple months ago. “Every time I see you, you look more grown up.”</p><p>“I am grown up. I’m nineteen, Robert,” Summer reminded him, laughing a bit as she did so. He chuckled.</p><p>“You’ll always be that kid stuck their tongue out at Mickey Rourke to me,” Robert teased and Summer blushed. Not really knowing how she had the balls to do that back then. In her defense, Mickey Rourke was one of the actors who thought the sea parted for them. Summer hated people like that. “You know Jon still talks about that.”</p><p>“Whatever,” Summer muttered and Robert waved them over.</p><p>“Have a seat with Tom and I. We’re just having lunch. I can get Emily to cook something up for you two,” Robert offered and Natalie shook her head.</p><p>“No thanks. We already ate,” Natalie told him and Robert shook her head.</p><p>“But you can still take a breather and hang out with Tom and I,” Robert told her and Natalie smiled at him. She knew if she didn’t sit with him then he’d annoy her into doing it, anyways. The older blonde glanced at her little sister who only smiled and nodded in response. Summer didn’t mind hanging out with Robert. It’s not like she had much else to do.</p><p>“Okay but only for a couple minutes,” Natalie told him as she and Summer walked over to the table. Natalie taking the empty seat next to Robert and Summer taking the empty one next to the cute guy.</p><p>“Tom, you haven’t met Summer yet, have you?” Robert inquired as he glanced over at Tom who couldn’t seem to take his eyes off the beautiful but very famous blonde. He coughed awkwardly before shaking his head.</p><p>“No, I don’t believe I have,” Tom said in a very distinct English accent which everyone knew Summer was a sucker for. Chris always teased her about her penchant for dating British guys and the cute guy named Tom was no exception. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m such a big fan.”</p><p>“It’s nice to meet you too,” Summer said, smiling at him and it didn’t escape Natalie’s notice that Summer was smiling a little too much at Tom. She had that look on her face whenever she was interested in a guy. Natalie knew her too well.</p><p>“I think you two are the same age, aren’t you?” Robert asked, looking at the two teenagers in amusement. “Summer, you’re nineteen and Tom is almost nineteen.”</p><p>“Yes, in a couple weeks,” Tom confirmed as he averted his gaze from Summer before trying to emphasize the fact that he and Summer were basically the same age. He wasn’t that much younger than her, anyways. Maybe a few months at most. “I’m practically nineteen. It’s just a couple weeks away.”</p><p>“God, nineteen and you’re Spider-Man. Can you imagine it took me until I was in my forties to become Iron Man,” Robert joked but it was all in good nature. He didn’t mean anything by it. Just some teasing towards the new meat of the cast. “Good for you, Kid.”</p><p>“Thanks, Robert,” Tom told him, giving the older actor a small smile. He truly felt appreciative towards the fact that Robert had really taken him under his wing since he’d been cast. Much like Tony Stark did with Peter Parker in the movie.</p><p>“Anyways…McGrath, where’s your hubby? I haven’t seen him since yesterday,” Robert said, changing the subject as he glanced towards Natalie. “The older McGrath, of course.”</p><p>“You don’t have to distinguish between me and my sister. It’s not like I have a husband that you’d confuse Chris with,” Summer told Robert who only shrugged in response before giving her a smirk.</p><p>“Yeah, just a bunch of boyfriends. What’s the new one’s name, again? Matt something?” Robert teased her and Summer playfully glared at him. “The one in that 1917 band.</p><p>“It’s Harry, actually,” Summer corrected and Robert laughed. “And Matty’s band was called the 1975.”</p><p>“I can’t keep up with you, McGrath. Next week it’ll be a Michael or a Brandon,” Robert quipped and Summer just shook her head. Natalie gave her sister a look as if to indicate that it wasn’t like Robert’s teasing was uncalled for. “Summer’s a player.”</p><p>“I am not,” Summer muttered because she really wasn’t. Indecisive and quick to fall in love but not whatever female version of a womanizer was. Mananizer? Was there even a word for it? It was kind of messed up that there wasn’t.</p><p>Wait...Maneater.</p><p>Ugh! </p><p>That sounded so much worse than womanizer. How was that even fair?</p><p>“Chris is filming something with Sebastian and Anthony,” Natalie said, changing the subject before her sister could come up with a comeback for Robert. “It’ll probably take the whole day so I’ve just been showing Summer around.”</p><p>Summer blushed at the mention of Sebastian. She’d always had a crush on the Romanian-American actor since she met him a couple years ago. Summer was discreet about it or, at least, she thought she was. Anthony Mackie noticed and teased her about it relentlessly.</p><p>“How is Alex, anyways?” Robert inquired and Natalie smiled. “That kid's almost walking now, right?”</p><p>“He’s fine. He’s back at the apartment with my mom,” Natalie informed him. “He sleeps a lot which makes me worry. Is it normal for a baby to sleep that much? Chris doesn’t think it’s big deal but it seems kind of weird to me.”</p><p>“God, you’re such a first-time Mom,” Robert told her with an amused look on his face while Summer and Tom watched boredly. They were both teenagers without the slightest idea what to do with kids. Summer was a great aunt but at the end of day she could always give Alex back to Natalie and Chris. “I remember those days. By the time you have your second and third one, you won’t give a shit anymore. You’ll be praying for them to sleep all day like Alex.”</p><p>“Are you more bored than I am?” Summer asked Tom quietly and the actor quickly turned to look at her as if he was surprised she’d spoken to him. He quickly nodded. “Then lets go. Give me the rest of the Civil War tour. I bet you’re a better tour guide than my sister.”</p><p>“Um…okay. I can do that,” Tom said nervously but also excitedly. Summer smiled at him and the two teenagers quickly got up from the table to get away from all the parenting talk. They were a little too eager to get away and nearly sprinted away from Robert and Natalie who definitely noticed.</p><p>“Now that’s interesting,” Robert said knowingly and Natalie just rolled her eyes as she watched her sister giggle at something Tom said while the actor in question blushed in return. Typical Summer. “They look kind of cute together. Don’t you think?”</p><p>“She has a boyfriend, Robert,” Natalie reminded him but Robert didn’t seem too concerned with that minor detail. He waved his hand dismissively.</p><p>“Her boyfriends come and go,” Robert said in response. Natalie supposed he had a point. She honestly gave it a month before Summer broke up with her boyfriend and found a new boyfriend she was head over heels in love with. “Maybe your sister needs a guy like Tom to settle down with. He’s a great. Very nice and down-to-earth. He comes from a good family. Besides…he’s also British and Summer loves British guys.”</p><p>“Leave it alone, Robert,” Natalie warned him, knowing that he looked a little too devious. “Summer doesn’t need helping getting boyfriends. She’s does more than fine on her own.”</p><p>“I didn’t say anything,” Robert said innocently and Natalie scoffed.</p><p>“Yeah, right.”</p><p>Natalie didn’t care about her sister getting a boyfriend. That was the last thing Summer needed right now. Natalie’s only priority was keeping Summer out of trouble. It almost like a second job but someone had to do it. Summer and Natalie’s parents were already burned out from raising two children eleven years apart.</p><p>Summer could definitely a exhaust a person, after all.</p>
<hr/><p>“Are you working on anything?” Tom asked her curiously as they walked across the lot. They’d chatted about numerous things but Tom’s curiosity couldn’t be held off any longer. Summer shrugged.</p><p>“I’m sort of in-between jobs right now. I just have a very brief time off before the next thing,” Summer informed him and Tom nodded. “What about you?”</p><p>“I’ve got a couple auditions here and there,” Tom confirmed as his gaze met hers. “Work hasn’t really been stable recently. Not for a couple years. This is actually the biggest thing to ever happen to me. Nothing will be this big again more than likely. I’m becoming slowly aware of that.”</p><p>“It’s going to be crazy,” Summer told him, being honest with him. “Marvel’s crazy. Everyone who gets cast becomes an overnight sensation. It doesn’t matter if you already had a steady career before or not. Everything becomes bigger and crazier. My sister was entitled to some privacy before all this but now she has very little.”</p><p>“Neither do you,” Tom told her and Summer didn’t say anything for a moment. “You’re crazy famous.”</p><p>“That’s different,” Summer told him as he listened to her curiously. “Disney Channel works really hard to make sure that you become an overnight sensation. It’s not the by-product of signing on to a huge movie franchise. You become a brand and a product for Disney Channel to invest in when you sign on with them. If you didn’t become some sort of teen idol then they wouldn’t be doing their job.”</p><p>“That sounds…dark,” Tom said, a bit amazed by everything Summer just said. He didn’t quite expect her to be so serious and grounded. Tom assumed she would’ve been more like what he imagined a Disney Channel star to be like…well, she wasn’t a Disney Channel star anymore so maybe not.</p><p>“Disney Channel doesn’t produce art. They produce products,” Summer informed him, knowing full well that Disney Channel wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows like most people believed. Once you got on the inside, everything looked a lot different. “That’s why I like working on indie movies now. It’s not about money or how much money it makes. I mean, budgets still have to be kept but it’s more about making art and I love that. Numbers don’t matter anymore.”</p><p>“That’s a really interesting way to look at it,” Tom said as he stared at her in admiration. He did indie movies because he wasn’t getting auditions for the big blockbusters. Tom didn’t really have much experience with anything bigger than that. “I’ve mostly only worked on indie films. Sort of smaller projects so I haven’t seen that side of it.”</p><p>“Numbers only matter when you do blockbusters because when there’s blockbusters, there’s usually potential sequels down the road,” Summer told him and Tom nodded. That made sense. “Box office numbers suddenly matter. If something doesn’t make a lot of money then they’re not going invest even more money in making a sequel. With indie films it doesn’t matter if they don’t make a lot of money because no one expected them to make much money. I mean, it’s always good when they make a lot of money but they weren’t initially made for money.”</p><p>“So which do you prefer then?” Tom asked her and Summer gave his question careful consideration before finally giving her answer. There were pros and cons to both so it wasn’t the easiest question to answer.</p><p>“It’s hard to say. With blockbusters, you usually work with actors you normally wouldn’t have worked with otherwise. The caterings always better on bigger film sets too. Food’s important,” Summer listed off, making Tom laugh. She was surprisingly funny. Not that he expected her to be dull or anything. Just not funny in this way. “You also get paid more which is nice.”</p><p>“Money’s definitely nice,” Tom quipped and Summer smiled before nodding.</p><p>“It can be,” Summer said before continuing. “But there’s less pressure on indie films in terms of numbers. Everything’s more intimate and secluded. It’s more about performance than all the crazy stunts everyone does here. I feel like you can make friends for life on the set of indie films and it’s a more beautiful process. I think I’d take a good, substantial role in an indie film over a mediocre one in a blockbuster.”</p><p>“You’re saying you wouldn’t take on a Marvel role like your sister?” Tom asked her in amusement and Summer sighed.</p><p>“I don’t know. I suppose it would depend on the role. If it was the right one then I guess but I’m not like her,” Summer told the English actor. He raised an eyebrow, silently questioning her meaning. Summer explained. “I mean that she’s a movie star. She’s so glamorous and everything. Natalie’s an Avenger for fuck’s sake which is as big as you can get right now in Hollywood. And I’m…well, I’m not like that.”</p><p>“Then what are you like?” Tom asked her, genuinely curious about the gorgeous blonde walking alongside him. Someone that was filled with so much mystery to him. Someone so crazy famous and beautiful that Tom honestly had no idea why she was talking to him. Probably because they were the same age. Yes, that had to be it.</p><p>“I don’t know but I’m not a movie star,” Summer said honestly before quickly rushing to elaborate before he got the wrong idea. “And I’m not saying that I’m jealous of her or anything because I’m not. I don’t really want to be a movie star. I’d rather be an actor.”</p><p>“I think you’re a movie star whether you like it or not. From where I’m standing you look like a movie star,” Tom said, his heart skipping a beat when he told her that. He didn’t know where he got the confidence to speak like that and to her of all people. Maybe it was a reckless thing to do but it’s how he felt. “You’re ridiculously famous. People know who you are just from name alone and I don’t think it’s entirely to do with your sister. It’s on your own merit.”</p><p>“I don’t feel like a movie star,” Summer said quietly, blushing at Tom’s compliment. He looked like he meant it too. “What even constitutes a movie star? When I think of a movie star I think of people like Grace Kelly, Jessica Lange, and Angelina Jolie. Glamorous people. I’m not glamorous.”</p><p>“You look glamorous,” Tom told her without thinking. Summer gave him an amused smile as he blushed at his word vomit. He hadn’t meant to speak without thinking. The words just seemed to pop out of his mouth. “I just mean that I think you could be like those people. Maybe you’re already like them.”</p><p>“I don’t know if I would want to be like them,” Summer said as she accepted Tom’s silent insistence on changing the subject much to Tom’s relief. “I’m finding out that I’m liking big budget Hollywood productions less and less these days. I’d rather be an indie actor with more creative control and who makes important art than another movie star who’s glamour fizzles out by their third Hollywood flop. Because when you’re a movie star and you stop starring in box office draws then what are you doing?”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Tom asked curiously. Summer shrugged.</p><p>“I just mean that movie stars are all about money but when there’s no money to be made then what’s left?” Summer said, posing an interesting question. “Non-movie stars, just actors, might not get million dollar contract deals every single movie like Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt but they make art that’s impactful, you know? Then they turn around once in a while and do the occasional big budget movie which gives them the freedom to pick their own roles. Just look at Mark Ruffalo for instance or even Oscar Isaac. They’re two of my favorite actors but they’re not really the movie star types, you know?”</p><p>“What’s a movie star to you then?” Tom asked her and Summer laughed as she considered his question thoughtfully. “With today’s actors.”</p><p>“I don’t know…probably my sister for one. Most of the films she does are big budget,” She noted before thinking about the others. “Probably Chris too. Maybe all the Chris’s in Hollywood, actually. Robert definitely.”</p><p>“That makes sense,” Tom said as he nodded before casting her a curious glance. “So no movie stardom for you? No big budget films at all?”</p><p>“I don’t want to sound like a snob. Like, all I care about are indie films which isn’t true. I love Marvel and Star Wars too. I love those blockbuster action films,” Summer defended before trying to find a way to explain herself to Tom. “I love them as an audience member but I’m not sure I want to star in too many. You make this super long commitment with films like this one. You spend most of the year filming them which takes away from other projects. There’s also all the additional publicity that comes with it.”</p><p>“I guess that’s true. With me, this is all I really had going for me so I don’t have to worry about the same stuff right now. Probably later on down the road,” Tom said, seeing Summer’s perspective and why she might be hesitant in following in her sister’s footsteps.</p><p>“And I get that. I probably would’ve jumped at the chance to play Spider-Man if I were you. That’s such a crazy opportunity,” Summer told him, wanting him to know that she hadn’t meant it was a bad idea for him. Just for Summer and where her life was right now. “I’ve definitely given it a lot of thought. I was offered a role in the new Star Wars film but I turned it down because I like the way my life is now. It’s already a bit crazy but throw in Star Wars and Marvel and you’re just asking for chaos.”</p><p>“You turned down Star Wars?” Tom asked in surprise, his eyes widening. Summer nodded, knowing exactly what he was thinking. Chris thought she was crazy for turning down JJ Abrams' offer for her to snag an audition. They’d work together years ago on one of the first films Summer ever did.</p><p>“I know, I know. It’s crazy and probably stupid,” Summer said, fully aware that she could’ve made a massive mistake but she also felt like she made the right decision. “But at the time I’d just gotten out of my contract with Disney and I was afraid with something as big as Star Wars, I’d be typecast. I fought so hard to get away from all the Disney Channel stuff that I didn’t want to risk typecasting again. Even for Star Wars.”</p><p>“That’s understandable and it’s incredible that you’ve managed to do that,” Tom complimented and Summer smiled. “I thought most Disney Channel stars became popstars, after all.”</p><p>“Ugh!” Summer said, rolling her eyes at the very idea. “They tried doing that to me too. They already did it to Zendaya but there was no way in hell I was going to become a popstar. That’s so embarrassing.”</p><p>“How is it embarrassing?” Tom asked as he laughed at the tall blonde. “It sounds pretty cool to me.”</p><p>“Because it would be me singing really bad music a bunch of middle-aged Swedish guys wrote about my experience as a teenaged girl then there would be cheesy music videos, awful choreography, and touring where I would probably make a fool of myself around the world,” Summer said as she listed off all the reasons she didn’t want to become a popstar. “It worked for Zendaya because she’s Zendaya and she can make anything look cool. I don’t have that same ability.”</p><p>“I’d buy your record,” Tom promised her and Summer scoffed, shaking her head.</p><p>“Then you’d be throwing your money out the window. It would probably be Selena Gomez and the Scene bad,” Summer retorted, knowing that she never made a mistake in turning down a record deal with Disney. “Or even when Hilary Duff tried to become a popstar bad.”</p><p>“I like Selena Gomez and Hilary Duff. What’s wrong with them?” Tom asked teasingly and Summer made a face of distaste.</p><p>“Nothing if you hate your ear drums,” Summer quipped. “Let’s just say they thought I could be the next Ke$ha. Like, Tik Tok and Blow Ke$ha.”</p><p>“I really would’ve loved to see that,” Tom said, trying to hold in laughter. Summer just shook her head.</p><p>“You’re probably the only person,” Summer told him before giving him a curious look of her own. “What about you? What’s your whole perspective on movie stars versus actors?”</p><p>“Well, that’s sort of a big question, isn’t it?” Tom noted before giving some thought towards her insightful question. “I’m not entirely sure. I think I’d be a movie star over just another actor.”</p><p>“Really?” Summer said, interested in his reason why. Tom nodded.</p><p>“Yeah, don’t you want to be in films that people see?” Tom told her and Summer stared at him, not really seeing that as a satisfactory reason. “Indie films are art and they’re impactful but that doesn’t mean a lot of people will see it. You put in all that work and what if no one ever sees it? It’s a bit of a waste, isn’t it?”</p><p>“It’s not a waste if you do something meaningful,” Summer told him but decided not to argue with him too much about it.</p><p> She entirely disagreed with his view on film.</p><p>Summer didn’t pick films based off the amount of people she thought would see it. She picked film roles based off the character, the story, and the people she would work with both in front of and behind the cameras. The amount of people seeing the movie never impacted her decision on whether or not she would pick that particular project.</p><p>The same went for picking movies because you wanted awards. Summer never even thought about award season when she picked film roles. She supposed if she thirsted after validation but Summer didn’t seek validation. She just wanted to make films that were important and meaningful. That touched people. Summer grew up loving the hidden gem indie films that changed the way she thought about the world. Some of her favorite films were indie films.</p><p>
  <em>Before Sunrise. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Empire Records.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>True Romance. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Winter’s Bone. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Frances Ha.</em>
</p><p>Say what you wanted about <em>The Texas Chainsaw Massacre</em>, <em>The Blair Witch Project</em>, and even <em>Paranormal Activity</em> but they were indie films and they all completely changed the way films were made. They even created a different DIY film style that no one had really seen before. Indie films were passion projects and you could tell a lot of detail and care was placed into them. All those movies shaped Summer’s love for film and made her want to make movies like that someday.</p><p>Summer was guilty of taking the role in the occasional blockbuster but Summer's true passion was taking on film roles more substantial than the ones in blockbusters. Usually that meant starring in indie films but Summer was fine with it. Everything was more intimate and the director usually gave Summer more creative freedom.</p><p>“I just want to make films that people see,” Tom told her once more. “Those are films I grew up watching. <em>Back to the Future</em>, <em>Indiana Jones</em>, and <em>Iron Man</em>. I love those films. Everyone loves those films.”</p><p>“That’s true,” Summer said, nodding in agreement with Tom. “There’s nothing wrong with movies that people see and love but I’m just saying that it’s great making something bigger than all of that on a smaller scale.”</p><p>“I see your point,” Tom told her, giving her a smile. Mostly because he never had a healthy debate with another actor like this. Especially not one he was ridiculously attracted to. “But I’d rather do this than go to another set where I freeze my ass off in the Canadian winter.”</p><p>“Summer in Atlanta is probably better than a winter in Canada,” Summer joked and Tom laughed before nodding.</p><p>“You have no idea,” Tom told her and they continued walking across the lot as Tom and Summer began a new topic of conversation. Somehow <em>New Girl</em> came up in conversation and they were both delighted to find fans in each other.</p><p>The two teenagers found that they had more in common than either of them would’ve expected.</p><p>Summer started to discreetly forget the fact that she had a boyfriend.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>2016</strong>
</p><p>“Summer, what’s the big deal?” Zendaya asked her friend as they chatted over dinner at the usual place. Summer’s friend Katy was also there. Summer usually tried to catch up with Zendaya whenever they were both in town together and free. By the stroke of luck, Katy was in town too. Katy who was Summer’s childhood best friend and was currently spending a couple weeks with Summer in LA during her summer break from college before she had to go back to New Mexico to start the new semester.</p><p>“Because I already have a boyfriend,” Summer said shortly as she poked her food with her fork, her mind clearly not on her meal. Katy rolled her eyes.</p><p>“You always have a boyfriend. That’s not a proper excuse,” Katy informed her best friend. The brunette looked annoyed with Summer. “There was Harry then you were single for, like, two months. Now there’s Richard who’s supposedly the love of your life?”</p><p>“I never said Richard was the love of my life,” Summer muttered as she gave her friend a glare. “And Harry and I decided that we were better off as friends.”</p><p>“Well, excuse us if we can’t keep up with the soap opera that’s your love life,” Zendaya said sarcastically and she would never understand Summer. It’s like Summer couldn’t handle being single. She always had to have a boyfriend while Zendaya had always been content with being single. She’d only had two boyfriends her whole life while Summer had who knows how many. “And I have yet to meet Richard so I can’t judge. I can only guess he’s better than Matty but every guy is better than Matty. What I’m getting at is that Tom and you would be perfect together.”</p><p>“Are we still on this?” Summer questioned, not wanting to talk about this. “Besides…you barely know Tom. You’ve only been working together for a few weeks.”</p><p>Summer and Tom had been friends for a year now. They’d exchanged numbers before Summer left Atlanta last summer and kept in contact ever since. They always met up and hung out whenever they were both in the same city. However, something changed last spring when Summer stayed with him and his family in London while she was attending fashion week there.</p><p>They had grown even closer and not even Summer could deny that it would be so easy to fall for him. Maybe she was already starting to. How could she not fall for Tom. He was the sort of guy most girls dream about. Kind, funny, considerate, funny, incredibly handsome, and a huge dork. He wasn’t a fuck boy like all the other guys Summer went out with.</p><p>That’s what made her feel nervous around him lately.</p><p>Summer didn’t really know how to talk to him anymore because she was starting to catch feelings for him.</p><p>“All he talks about is you. He goes on and on about you as if I didn’t already know you were great. I’d be surprised if he wasn’t in love with you,” Zendaya said, making Summer a bit uncomfortable. “He’s amazing, Summer. He’s nice, hilarious, a great head on his shoulders, grounded, and his family’s amazing. Most of all, he really adores you. Tom practically worships the ground you walk on.”</p><p>“I’m with Zendaya on this one, Summer,” Katy told her, wanting to weigh in on this. “You fall in love with so many guys but they never really cherish you the way they should. You always love them more than they love you and I think Tom’s the first one who actually genuinely has feelings for you.”</p><p>“Tom’s not my boyfriend. He’s my friend,” Summer told her two friends stubbornly. “I don’t have a lot of those in the industry. You know how actors are and I don’t care to lose one of the few friends I have in this industry. Besides…he works with Natalie and Chris. I already stress my sister out enough and I don’t want to stress her out at work too by dating one of her co-workers. She deserves better.”</p><p>“I think you’re just scared,” Zendaya told her bluntly, her gaze focused on Summer’s face. The slightly older girl became uncomfortable under her friend’s knowing gaze because deep down she knew Zendaya was right. “You’re scared because you date all these assholes who don’t care about you and deep down you know they’ll never last so you feel safe. Tom scares you because he’s not like the others. He’ll stick around.”</p><p>“It’s a really bad idea,” Summer told her friends who still didn’t look convinced. “We live thousands of miles apart. He has a life in London and I have one here in LA.”</p><p>“Please, your parents live in New Mexico and your sister moved to New York. Nothing’s really holding you here other than friends,” Katy told her and Summer knew she was right in a way. “Daya’s right. You’re just scared because you’re afraid of getting hurt but Tom won’t hurt you because he’s not like the others. He’s one of a kind and he’s an actual nice guy who would treat you like a queen."</p><p>“Yeah, well…Zendaya’s in LA and I can’t just up and leave you here, Daya,” Summer said quietly, looking down at her plate. She knew that she was grasping at straws here. Zendaya scoffed.</p><p>“Don’t worry about me,” Zendaya told her dismissively while giving her a knowing look. “Besides…you’re not even dating him yet. Lets not talk about you moving just yet. Who knows? Maybe if you and Tom get together, he’ll move here which would be amazing. I love Tom and we could hang out all the time.”</p><p>“Now you’re making me sad,” Katy said as she playfully pouted. Summer gave her a smile. “I’m still stuck in New Mexico and everyone’s here in LA.”</p><p>“The years will pass by fast. It won’t be long before you can move out here,” Summer told her and Katy snorted.</p><p>“Yeah, right. Like, I could ever afford California prices. We’re not all super famous actors,” Katy retorted and Summer laughed.</p><p>“Well, I’ll let you live at my new place in Laurel Canyon,” Summer offered both joking and sincerely. She actually always envisioned her and Katy as roommates together someday. “It’ll be payment for that time you gave me your jacket when I first got my period so I could hide the stain.”</p><p>“Laurel Canyon? You’re such a fucking hippie,” Katy quipped before shaking her head. “I’m pretty sure a fifteen dollar jacket from Kohl’s isn’t equal to a free room at a celebrity mansion in Laurel Canyon.”</p><p>“Don’t change the subject, Summer,” Zendaya told her, giving her friend another knowing look. Summer sighed. She thought she’d gotten away with a change of subject but apparently not. “You should give Tom and you a chance.”</p><p>“Yeah, you and Tom are endgame,” Katy said, nodding as she seemed to be ganging up on Summer with Zendaya. Summer looked at the both of them.</p><p>“What about Richard?” Summer questioned. Richard was Richard Madden. Her current very Scottish boyfriend who she met backstage of the Graham Norton show when she promoting a film. Nearly everyone disapproved because of the age difference but just like always, Summer never listened.</p><p>“Who gives a fuck about Richard?” Katy told her and Summer gave her a look. “I’m serious. He’s thirty. All he wants is sex with a barely twenty-year-old.”</p><p>“Yeah, tell Richard boy bye,” Zendaya said seriously as she went about explaining to Summer how to do this. “Tell him something like it’s you and not him. Whatever it is so that you spare his feelings even though I’m positive he wouldn’t spare yours.”</p><p>“Yes, then you run over to wherever Tom is and tell him that you want to be with him. That you love him, you think he’s the prettiest man you’ve ever seen, and that you want to marry him and have his babies,” Katy said, taking it from Zendaya’s suggestion. “I can one hundred percent guarantee that Tom will return your feelings and you two can live your best lives together."</p><p>“I don’t know,” Summer said, still non convinced by her friends. “Like I said, Tom’s my only friend in the industry but he’s also my only guy friend too. Other than Harry, of course. I feel like that I always date the guys I’m friends with and I don’t want Tom to turn into one of those guys.”</p><p>“You two are like best friends,” Zendaya pointed out, wanting Summer to just let herself be happy with someone for once. “Dating your best friend might not be bad and even if things ended for whatever reason, I’m sure you can stay friends. I don’t see a world in which you and Tom aren’t in each other’s lives. You’ll be fine so stop worrying.”</p><p>“Just admit that you, at least, like Tom and have feelings for him. Everyone knows it except the two of you,” Katy added as both she and Zendaya looked at Summer expectantly. Summer finally sighed before nodding.</p><p>“Fine…I guess I do have feelings for him,” Summer finally admitted aloud. A part of her always knew that but her friends were right. She was also terrified. Everything she felt for Tom was bigger and scarier than what she felt for past boyfriends. “How can I not? He’s Tom.”</p><p>“Then you need to grow some balls and tell him that,” Zendaya told her seriously. “Because he’s Tom and he probably won’t make the first move. It has to be you.”</p><p>Except that it wasn’t her.</p><p>Because Tom <em>would</em> make the first move.</p>
<hr/><p> </p><p>“Summer, I’m totally and entirely in love with you,” Tom declared, his brown eyes staring into her blue ones. A blush came across Summer’s face as her heart raced in her chest. “I can’t keep it to myself anymore. Not when I see you or talk to you all the time like I do.”</p><p>“Tom…” Summer trailed off as he spoke. She didn’t really have any words. It was two weeks after the conversation with Zendaya and Katy. It was two months and Summer had still been too chicken to confess her true feelings to Tom. It shocked her when Tom texted her that he was coming to her house. She would’ve thought he’d go back to London after wrapping on the new Spider-Man movie.</p><p>“Just let me finish. Please,” Tom insisted and Summer fell silent again as he continued. “I’ve been in love with you for over a year now. Ever since we met. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve loved being your friend but I’ve also wanted so much more.”</p><p>“You can’t understand how difficult it is to see you with other guys. First, Harry and now Richard,” Tom continued to tell her as Summer listened to him. “I’m overcome with jealousy and hurt because I don’t want you with them. I just want you with me and I know that you’re unbelievably out of my league. Harrison never ceases to remind me of that but I know I’ll regret it forever if I don’t tell you just much I’m in love with you.”</p><p>“I love how funny and kind you are. I see how you are with fans. Even when you just want to be alone for the day, you still interact with them because you know how much it means to them,” Tom informed her, giving Summer a small smile as she was just left floored by Tom’s declaration. “I love how you’re so passionate about your work. The way you talk about it and the work you put into it.”</p><p>“I love your smile and your gorgeous blue eyes. I love how your laugh lights up a room,” Tom listed off and Summer gave him a small smile. “I love everything about you. You’re the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever seen and I know you’re dating Richard. He’s great. He’s funny, handsome, and charming. I’m sure he’s a nice guy but I can’t help the way I feel.”</p><p>Tom stopped, breathing heavy as he finally finished everything he wanted to say. It seemed as though he were out of breath. Summer took a brief moment to gather her thoughts before answering as Tom stared at her almost expectantly, nervously anticipating her response to his declaration of love.</p><p>“Tom, thank you for saying all those kind things,” Summer finally said and Tom winced. He didn’t think this would go well. “I’m speechless by it and I didn’t know you felt that way. Not that intensely, at least.”</p><p>“You had to have some idea? I don’t think I was very discreet,” Tom said jokingly and Summer smiled.</p><p>“I knew you had a crush but not to that extent,” Summer told him sincerely before growing serious again when she realized what she had to say. “I’m flattered but Tom…you work with my sister and Chris. Who knows how many movies you have yet to make with them. I don’t want to make anything difficult for them.”</p><p>“How would this make things difficult?” Tom asked in confusion and Summer sighed before answering. She realized there was no way to explain herself without keeping her true feelings to herself.</p><p>“Because I think I love you too, Tom,” Summer finally confessed much to Tom’s shock. His brown eyes widened as he stared at her in surprise. “I do. I’ve started falling in love with you ever since London. You’re one of my best friends. There’s no one I laugh with more or have more fun with than you. You’re the sweetest guy I’ve ever met. How could I not fall for you?”</p><p>“You really feel that way?” Tom asked hopefully and Summer nodded, still scared at what she just confessed to him.</p><p>“I really do,” Summer said before shaking her head. “But we can’t do this, Tom. You work with Natalie and Chris. Even if I wasn’t with Richard…I just don’t want to put them in an awkward position if anything went south between us.”</p><p>“What makes you think that things would go south?” Tom asked, a hurt expression on his face. Summer swallowed hard before looking up at him.</p><p>“Tom, this is Hollywood. Things always go south between two actors. It’s just the way it works,” Summer said cynically. “You guys all work together. I don’t even work for Marvel. I don’t want to make things awkward between everyone.”</p><p>“What about any of the things I’ve said today makes you think that this would end badly? That we wouldn’t last?” Tom asked, trying his best to convince Summer to give them a chance. “I’m crazy about you, Love. This isn’t some fling or fleeting romance that I’m interested in. I think you’re the love of my life. I’ve known that for quite some time now.”</p><p>“I’m just scared of losing you,” Summer said, her eyes growing sad at the very idea of Tom somehow not being a part of her life. She hated the thought of it. “You’re my best friend. I don’t want to ever lose you or hate you.”</p><p>“You won’t lose me,” Tom promised her, chuckling at the very idea. He and Summer were so close now that he couldn’t imagine life without her in it. “I promise you’ll never have to lose me. I’ll always be there. Yes, the situation’s complicated because of work and the media but we can make this work. I know we can. I love you too much to not even give it a chance.”</p><p>“You really mean that?” Summer asked softly. “That I won’t lose you? Because I don’t know what I’d do without you.”</p><p>“Of course I mean it,” Tom told her, taking her hands into his. “I’m being serious. You won’t ever lose me because I wouldn’t be that stupid. Not with you. Just give us a chance. Leave Richard. I know that’s an awful thing to ask but I can’t see you with him anymore.”</p><p>“I can leave Richard,” Summer told him, her gaze unwavering as she continued to stare into Tom’s mesmerizing brown eyes. “It’s always been you, Tom. I don’t love him. I’ve only ever loved you.”</p><p>“Really?” Tom questioned and she nodded. This seemed to make Tom overcome with joy. She nodded, giving him a smile.</p><p>“I’ve never felt this way before. It scares the shit out of me. I fall in love so fast and get my heart broken so much but I don’t think any of it was real because none of it was scary like it is now,” Summer rambled on, trying to find a way to explain why she loved Tom so much. “I’m so scared of you because I feel too much for you. I was so angry when I saw Laura’s friend with you even though I had no right to be. I have a boyfriend and it’s just selfish.”</p><p>“It’s okay to be selfish sometimes,” Tom told her and she shook her head. “And there was nothing going on between Kara and me.”</p><p>“But it’s not fair to you,” Summer told him and Tom didn’t seem to mind. He just continued looking at her as though she just told him he could have the whole world.</p><p>“Just let yourself love me,” Tom murmured to her and Summer couldn’t help but fall for his words. It was too easy. “Not everything’s doomed to fail. There’s not a single ounce in me that feels like we would be doomed. We’ll be okay.”</p><p>“Tom…” Summer started to say but he never let her finish. He closed the gap between them with his lips and Summer instantly melted into the kiss. It was something she’d been imagining for the past year. A fantasy but never a reality…of what it would be like to kiss Tom, be held by him, and to just be with Tom.</p><p>A fantasy that finally became a reality that October night.</p>
<hr/><p>“What’s in this one?” Tom asked Summer as he glanced at one of the boxes that were littered across his living room floor.</p><p>Tom and Summer had only been dating for a couple weeks when he asked her to move in with him…in London. Literally, thousands of miles away from home. A country where Summer had zero friends. Where she basically knew no one.</p><p>Her sister thought she’d been crazy for dumping Richard and then jumping headfirst into a relationship with Tom. It was by far the craziest thing Summer had ever done and she’d done a lot of crazy things in her life. None so crazy as Summer moving to another country to live with a boyfriend she’s barely been with.</p><p>Summer didn’t mind.</p><p>Yes, she moved away from her friends and family but it was also exciting. Living with someone and then living in a foreign country. Summer had always loved England and now she was living in London of all places with her boyfriend who she was madly in love with.</p><p>Boyfriend.</p><p>It was still weird to call Tom that. For the longest time, he’d only been her friend but now he was so much more than that. A boyfriend and a partner at the same time.</p><p>“Makeup,” Summer answered him as she reorganized the utensils in the kitchen drawer. Tom smirked.</p><p>“How many boxes of makeup can one person possibly have?” Tom questioned as he leaned against the kitchen counter. “I feel like there’s been, at least, three boxes filled with makeup.”</p><p>“Some people collect Funko Pops, I collect makeup,” Summer explained nonchalantly as if it wasn’t weird she had so much makeup. Tom would never understand her. She could be girly yet not at the same time. He never thought that was possible.</p><p>“This is so weird,” Tom stated, as he continued glancing between Summer and all the boxes in the apartment of her stuff. Summer gave him an amused look.</p><p>“What’s so weird?” Summer asked him and Tom just grinned at her before shrugging.</p><p>“I don’t know. You and me together…living together,” Tom reminded her and Summer immediately knew what he was talking about. “It’s not just the fact that we’re together. I’ve never lived with anyone before. Not since I lived with my parents which, in all honesty, wasn’t that long ago.”</p><p>“Well, I’ve never lived with anyone either,” Summer said, feeling a bit more shy than before. Everything was new and somewhat scary. Exciting, yes, but definitely scary too. “You’re the first. It’s crazy but also exciting and brand new.”</p><p>“It’s almost like we’re married or something,” Tom said flirtatiously and Summer giggled as Tom took a step towards her.</p><p>“I don’t mind playing house,” Summer joked and Tom kept moving towards her until he was standing right in front of her.</p><p>“Maybe we should play house in the bedroom,” Tom told her and Summer caught his suggestive tone. She smirked at him as she traced shapes over the top of his hand which was resting on the kitchen island.</p><p>“We could play house anywhere we wanted in this place,” Summer retorted and Tom swallowed hard, a faint blush coming over his face. “It’s our place now. No one else is here.”</p><p>“I will take that under consideration,” Tom said before he leaned over and swept her up into a grand, romantic kiss. It was the sort of kiss Summer saw in movies growing up but now it was real life which made it even better.</p><p>For the first time, Summer felt truly happy with her life. She was content with everything in it. Her career, herself, and her boyfriend. Why wouldn’t she be happy? She had the whole entire world in the palm of her hands right now.</p><p>Summer hoped that it would stay like this forever.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>2017</strong>
</p><p>“Ruffalo, what are you doing?” Robert called out as he spotted the famous actor already digging into the cake. Robert had thrown a party for the cast of <em>Infinity War</em> before filming started. Summer had come as Tom’s plus one although she’d been to a couple of Robert’s parties before as her sister’s guest so it wasn’t new to her. Not entirely.</p><p>“Love, you look so gorgeous tonight,” Tom whispered in her ear as the two young actors stood off to the side, taking in the huge amount of celebrities tonight. Everywhere you turned there seemed to be a new celebrity. Both were starstruck but, in all honesty, even if Jennifer Aniston suddenly showed up, Tom still wouldn’t be totally fazed. Not with Summer there beside him. They’d been dating a while now and Tom still couldn’t get used to having her with him.</p><p>He didn’t want to get used to it either.</p><p>So there’d be no chance in losing any of the magic that came with Summer McGrath.</p><p>“Tom, stop it,” Summer told him, giggling as she tried to find her sister and Chris in the crowd of people at the place Robert was renting in Atlanta. “There’s people around.”</p><p>“So?” Tom told her, obviously teasing the actress. He couldn’t really seem to keep his hands off her in the backless dress she was wearing. The neckline was plunging and Tom couldn’t help but stare. The dress left little to the imagination and he hoped that it was one of the dresses she got to keep instead of just another loan from a fashion brand. Tom would miss the dress if she had to return it.</p><p>“So…these people are our friends and some who I’ve known since I was thirteen,” Summer reminded him and Tom just laughed.  “I’d rather if you didn’t stare down my dress in front of them. Save the pervy boyfriend behavior for home.”</p><p>“I’ll try my very best,” Tom said although Summer wasn’t convinced. She gave her boyfriend’s hand a tight squeeze as a not so innocent look came over her face.</p><p>“If you stay on your best behavior then I promise to make it worth your while tonight,” Summer flirted and now it was Tom’s turn to blush. She laughed at the look on his face as he nodded before swallowing hard.</p><p>“Yeah, I think I can do that,” Tom told her, his voice a little shaky. She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “What did you have in mind?”</p><p>Summer didn’t answer him. She just laughed at him again and all his antics which were always amusing to her. How could he be so much trouble yet so adorable at the same time? Summer didn’t think she would ever know. All she knew was that she madly in love with him.</p><p>“Look at the two love birds,” Robert announced loudly as he approached the two teenagers keeping to themselves. He practically beamed at them. “What are you kids giggling about over here?”</p><p>“You know…just the usual stuff,” Tom lied horribly, causing Summer to giggle. It could’ve also been the wine she consumed. She was now twenty-one and could drink in public while Tom still had some waiting to do. At least in the states.</p><p>“Okay, I get it. Sexy time stuff,” Robert teased, his charismatic grin unwavering. “Well, stop hiding away from the rest of us. I know you two just moved in together and you’re in that honeymoon phase but there’s a whole other world with people in it, you know.”</p><p>“We’re not hiding away,” Summer denied and Robert seemed doubtful at that. Summer and Tom had been glued at the hip during the whole entire party. They didn’t seem to notice the world outside just the two of them. It was a beautiful thing to see in all honesty. Young love. Robert was truly happy for the both of them. He’d known Summer since she was a middle-schooler and he’d known Tom for a while now too. Robert truly wished them the best.</p><p>Natalie, on the other hand, was a different case.</p><p>While Natalie really liked Tom and approved of him, she also disapproved of Summer and Tom moving in together. She thought her sister was truly insane for already living with Tom. Just forget the fact that Summer dumped one boyfriend before jumping into her relationship with Tom. The fact that Summer had moved across the world to live with her new boyfriend was insane.</p><p>Natalie was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. For Summer to find something wrong with Tom like she did with all her past boyfriends. Or for Summer to get on Tom’s nerves with her antics. It was no easy task keeping up with Summer and Natalie honestly didn’t think Tom would last.</p><p>Now she seemed to be eating her words.</p><p>Over five months into the relationship and the young couple seemed just as happy as the night they got together. Everything seemed alright. Natalie still had her concerns but she was starting to think that Tom might really be different, after all. He might’ve even been good for Summer.</p><p>“Mackie had to pay me fifty bucks when you two kids got together. He thought Tom didn’t have the balls to go for it,” Robert informed them with a smirk on his face. Summer gave him an unamused look as Tom blushed.</p><p>“Fifty? Aren’t you both millionaires? Fifty was as high as either of you were willing to go?” Summer retorted and Robert just chuckled.</p><p>“Well, I’m happy you two kids are off in London living your best young lives together,” Robert continued to congratulate them. “Just send me an invite to the wedding.”</p><p>“Yes…of course, Robert. Thanks, Mate,” Tom told his mentor nervously at the mention of a wedding while Summer felt her heart skip a beat from the very same thing.</p><p>Wedding?</p><p>Summer obviously knew Robert was just teasing them but it was the first time the thought of marrying Tom ever occurred to her. Well, maybe that was a lie. Technically, she thought about marrying Tom a couple weeks into the relationship which she did with every boyfriend. However, it was the first time anyone made any reference to her and Tom getting married.</p><p>She was just the type of person to fantasize.</p><p>Summer could only be dating a guy for a couple weeks and she’d have their lives planned out together. She thought she’d date Tom for a full year before he’d propose and then they’d be engaged. The wedding planning process wouldn’t be that long since Summer had been planning her wedding since she was seven so they’d get married seven months after the engagement. Summer could’ve given Monica Geller a run for her money with the secret wedding binder Summer had stashed at her parent’s house.</p><p>Then Summer wanted a full year of post-wedding bliss before she’d get pregnant with their first child. Hopefully a little boy because Summer never had any brothers and always wanted a protective older brother which would be nice for the two daughters they’d have after little James Dominic Holland was born. James for Summer’s late grandfather and Dominic for Tom’s father but also because Summer liked the name. Summer wanted a normal name for her and Tom’s babies.</p><p>All those celebrity baby names were ridiculous.</p><p>If all went according to her fantasies then Summer and Tom would be married with their first child by the time they were twenty-four. They were already living together so it wasn’t like it was that much of a stretch. Sure, Summer had these fantasies with past boyfriends but she honestly didn’t think about this stuff half as much with any of them. There was also the fact that she couldn’t realistically see it happening but with Tom she really could.</p><p>It was true that Summer fell in love fast and got her heart broken just as easy but she was beginning to realize that it wasn’t really love. Just infatuation which was why it faded so fast and she moved on to the best new thing to come her way. It wasn’t like that with Tom. Maybe it was because they started out as friends and to a certain extent it still felt like that with him.</p><p>“Leave them alone, Robert,” Natalie told the older actor as she rolled her eyes. Chris stood next to her with a drink in hand, not really paying attention to what was going on. “They’re already bored out of their minds. There’s a million reasons why they’d rather be anywhere else than at a party with a bunch of boring old people.”</p><p>“We’re not boring old people,” Robert told her, feigning an offended expression. “I happen to be very spry for my old age I’ll have you know.”</p><p>“I can’t believe I’m going to have to spend well over a year with you,” Natalie replied in a bored tone. Robert glared at her playfully. “As if the past eight years weren’t enough.”</p><p>“Evans? You’re just going to let your wife talk to me like that?” Robert asked the other actor jokingly. Chris shrugged, not looking too concerned with what was going on.</p><p>“Pretty much,” Chris replied before walking out of the room. Robert scoffed.</p><p>“Real keeper you got there, McGrath,” Robert said sarcastically. “I’m starting to think your sister got a better bargain. It looks like Summer’s becoming my favorite McGrath sister.”</p><p>“Somehow I don’t feel too heartbroken over that,” Natalie retorted before following her husband out of the room. Robert followed her out much to her dismay and probably annoyance.</p><p>“At least that got Robert off our case,” Summer told her boyfriend who nodded. It wasn’t as if they didn’t like Robert but he seemed to dote on them every chance he got now that they were together. It was almost like he was more happy about them being together than they were. He even sent them one of those edible fruit arrangements as a housewarming gift when they moved in together.</p><p>“At least, for a short while,” Tom told her with an affectionate smile. Summer returned his smile. She was about to reply with something equally as sassy when she noticed a certain duo out of the corner of her eye.</p><p>Sebastian and Anthony.</p><p>“Oh no…” Summer said as she blushed at just the sight of Sebastian Stan. Tom rolled his eyes. His girlfriend could be silly when she wanted to be.</p><p>“What’s with you and Sebastian, anyways?” Tom asked and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“Isn’t there that one person who you can’t really function around or say anything intelligible?” Summer asked him and Tom scoffed.</p><p>“Yes…you,” Tom told her and Summer sighed.</p><p>“That’s not what I mean,” Summer told him as Sebastian spilled his drink on his shirt when Anthony elbowed him in the side. Sebastian gave his friend an annoyed look. “Oh my god. Just look at him.”</p><p>“Yeah, I totally see it now,” Tom said sarcastically and Summer blushed nonetheless.</p><p>“I always try to act normal around him and I really can’t. I try and then I end up with a bunch of word vomit,” Summer explained to her boyfriend as she was even stumped about the effect Sebastian had on her. It was really ever since she met him which was years ago. “He probably just thinks I’m weird or something.”</p><p>“No, he knows about the crush,” Tom told her bluntly and Summer looked at him in surprise. Tom chuckled. “Summer, Love, everyone knows about the crush. Especially Sebastian.”</p><p>“Oh my god. I’m going to die,” Summer muttered to herself, horrified that even her crush knew about the crush. “I need to leave the party right now and just go back to our home where I’ll just hide without ever having to see his pretty stupid face ever again.”</p><p>Tom’s heart soared at the fact that she referred to home as “our” home instead of just home. Instead of commenting on this, Tom simply wrapped his arm around Summer and began to lead her away from Sebastian.</p><p>“It’s really going to be fine,” Tom assured his girlfriend who was currently panicking. “Sebastian doesn’t mind. In fact, he’s very flattered by the crush.”</p><p>“No, stop talking. Please stop talking,” Summer complained loudly as Tom laughed at her expense. “I’m going to actually die of embarrassment.”</p><p>“Well, maybe we can fix this,” Tom told Summer in a serious voice. Summer gave him a hopeful look.</p><p>“Really? How?” She questioned and his eyes glinted with mischief as he began to smirk at her.</p><p>“By proving to Sebastian that you’re much more interested in me now,” Tom suggested as Summer started to narrow her eyes in suspicion. “Maybe a little snog right here, right now.”</p><p>“Ugh! You’re incorrigible, Holland,” Summer told him before storming out of the room to go find her sister. Tom laughed at her as she left, clearly amused by his girlfriend’s antics. There was no one more amusing or funnier than Summer, after all.</p><p>He just hoped that he didn’t have to pay for that suggestion in some shape or form later on.</p>
<hr/><p>Usually it wasn’t often that Summer and Tom had time off together. Not with Tom filming whatever Marvel blockbuster he was off doing or Summer working on her umpteenth indie film. Yet somehow Summer and Tom managed to get a month off together spent in London when celebrating their one year anniversary.</p><p>“What time is it?” Tom asked Summer when they both finally woke up. Summer smiled at him softly. They were curled up in bed together under the covers as they cuddled. Summer always claimed that cuddling was necessary with London’s chilly weather. Tom laughed at the way Summer was always bundled up in layers during the fall and winter months. Spring too if she was being perfectly honest. The New Mexico native seemed to be sensitive to the cold.</p><p>“Probably noon,” Summer said softly. Tom groaned as he stretched and opened his eyes.</p><p>“We slept too late, didn’t we?” Tom said but he didn’t look like he wanted to get out of bed any time soon. “I’m probably supposed to be going to the gym.”</p><p>“Or you’re probably just supposed to spend the whole day in bed with me,” Summer told him as she buried her face in the crook of his neck. He was so warm and the apartment felt so cold.</p><p>“That sounds like a perfect day,” Summer told him, unconcerned with Tom going to the gym.</p><p>“I really need to go to the gym, Love,” Tom told her seriously and Summer sighed as he sat up in bed.</p><p>“Why?” Summer whined as she wrapped the comforter around herself tighter to compensate for the loss of his warmth. “You should just stay here with me. You’ll be fine with just one lazy day. Besides…I’ve always liked a man with a little meat on his bones. I think I’d like a Tom with a little love tummy.”</p><p>“Love tummy?” Tom asked her in amusement and Summer nodded although she couldn’t keep the smile off her face.</p><p>“You’d be all nice and soft for me. Perfect for cuddling,” Summer told him because she honestly didn’t care if Tom kept in shape or not. She wasn’t shallow or anything. What she looked for in a guy wasn’t six packs or bulging muscles. It just so happened Tom already came with a six pack from his Spider-Man role. Summer just loved Tom. She wouldn’t care if he had a six pack or a no pack.</p><p>“As lovely as that sounds, I can’t afford it. My trainer wants to put me on a new diet and new training regimen for the new movie. It’s a lot stricter than before,” Tom explained to her as he tried to wake up so he could head down to the gym. “It’s going to be a long year.”</p><p>Tom leaned over and kissed her on the forehead softly. Summer realized that there was no way she getting him to stay in bed. He was going to leave no matter what.</p><p>“Fine. Leave me to freeze to death in this apartment,” Summer complained jokingly and Tom chuckled.</p><p>“I’ll turn on the heater for you, Love,” Tom retorted before getting up from bed. “I’ll try to leave the gym early and maybe pick up some take-out on the way home. Text me what you want. Then we’ll watch that new movie Charlize Theron movie I know you really wanted to see. The one where she kicks ass.”</p><p>“She kicks ass in every movie,” Summer told him jokingly before nodding. “But yes, that sounds amazing.”</p><p>“It’ll be fun. I’ll make up for all the gym time, I swear,” Tom promised her and Summer smiled.</p><p>“You better,” Summer told him and he leaned down again, closing the gap between them with a quick kiss. Tom broke the kiss a moment later because it really was getting late. His trainer was probably wondering where the hell he was.</p><p>Summer watched him leave with a completely love sick look on her face. It was something Zendaya probably would’ve rolled her eyes at but Summer couldn’t help it. She was entirely in love with that dork. Tom was the best. Yes, Marvel took up a lot of his time but he always made up for it in the end.</p><p>At least when the relationship was new, anyways.</p><p>Because Tom actually wouldn’t come home that night until much later than expected and when all the take-out shops were closed. A couple hours at the gym turned into a few and then he’d meet up with his friends at the pub without Summer. Tom would apologize and promise it wouldn’t happen again except that it would time and time again.</p><p>Summer just didn’t know it quite yet.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>2018</strong>
  
</p><p>“Alex, that’s so cool!” Summer exclaimed as her nephew finished listing off all the colors he knew. He was sitting on her lap as he proudly told Summer everything he’d learned in pre-school so far. Summer couldn’t believe he was already four. It seemed like just yesterday when he was born. “How’d you even know about turquoise? Only absolute geniuses know about turquoise.”</p><p>“Lily told me,” Alex told her and Summer smirked knowingly at him.</p><p>“Ooh…who’s Lily? Your new girlfriend?” Summer asked him teasingly and he giggled.</p><p>Summer and Tom had taken up babysitting for the night so that Natalie and Chris could have a date night. They were staying at Natalie and Chris’s New York apartment while visiting them. It was actually kind of fun hanging out with Natalie and Chris as a couple. Summer never remembered hanging out and doing couple-y things with them in any of her past relationships.</p><p>Probably because her sister hated all her ex-boyfriends.</p><p>“Ow! Livy, you don’t need to do that,” Tom told the two-year-old little girl who was currently trying to climb Tom. Summer’s niece was born in the spring of 2016 and for some crazy reason, this time Natalie and Chris made Summer the godmother of Olivia. Summer was taking her godmother combined with aunt duties very seriously by spoiling not just Olivia but Alex too. Natalie wasn’t too appreciative of the fact.</p><p>“Just let her do what she wants, Tom,” Summer said in a bored tone as she and Alex remained seriously focused on whatever weird cartoon kids were watching these days. Tom scoffed.</p><p>“Yes, excellent parenting advice, Summer,” Tom said sarcastically as he tried to pull Olivia off of him. “I’ll remember that for when we have kids.”</p><p>Summer withheld the desire to squeal in excitement.</p><p>Tom mentioned kids.</p><p>It was perhaps the first time in their almost two year relationship that Tom mentioned the desire to have kids together. Summer mentioned it a lot but decided to reel it back in a while ago because Tom always got weird about it. She didn’t want him to feel like she was pressuring him or anything. Summer never meant it that way. She just got so excited about a future with Tom that she couldn’t help it.</p><p>Summer wasn’t going to say anything now.</p><p>She didn’t want to scare Tom away so she needed to be cool about this. Summer could definitely be cool about this and just pretend like it was nothing. She could hold in all the excitement she was feeling at this new development in her relationship with Tom.</p><p>Well, maybe not completely but she could definitely text Zendaya and Katy and get their opinions on this news. She could celebrate in her mind even though her plan with Tom had fallen through. Summer honestly thought she’d be engaged by now but it was okay.</p><p>Maybe her plan was too fast, anyways.</p><p>It’s not like she and Tom didn’t have all the time in the world because they did. They were both only in their early twenties. Besides…she and Tom already lived together and they acted like a married couple. A piece of paper to prove it didn’t really matter.</p><p>Even though Summer was also consumed with envy whenever one of her friends back home got engaged. It was different for them. Everything was simpler. They got to keep their privacy and didn’t live in the public eye like Summer and Tom. Everything was more complicated because of that along with their careers. It wasn’t weird that they’d been together for almost two years now with not even a single conversation about their future that went past a couple months ahead of time.</p><p>Right?</p><p>“Livy, stop pulling on Uncle Tom’s hair, okay? Thanks,” Tom told Summer’s niece and Summer was consumed with the fantasy of Tom as a father someday. It was so easy to see as Olivia climbed over him. Summer turned back to look at her the cartoon Alex was watching but she couldn’t shake the feeling.</p><p>Tom would be such a great father.</p>
<hr/><p>“Your singing was spectacular in that movie,” Harry told Summer but she didn’t seem too convinced. The famous pop singer stood a little too close to her for Tom’s liking. Tom who was standing at the opposite end of the room talking to a producer.</p><p>Summer and Tom were both attending a charity function they’d been invited to and who should also be invited but one of Summer’s exes. There seemed quite a few of those as Tom was finding out. Tom just had one ex while Summer seemed to have many.</p><p>“No, it wasn’t,” Summer denied as she laughed. Tom practically seethed. How could she be so blatant about talking with her ex? Summer told him she and Harry remained friends but he thought she meant that they broke up amicably and just never spoke after that. However, Zendaya might’ve let slip that Summer still kept in contact with Harry.</p><p>“I saw that movie and you were amazing in it,” Harry complimented her and Summer blushed from his praise. “I mean, I’ve always known you were quite the dancer. Now an amazing vocalist too.”</p><p>“I had a vocal coach so it wasn’t all just pure natural talent,” Summer told him as she tried to downplay the compliment. “Dancing always come easy to me. Singing’s so much harder and doing it in front of people…I really don’t know how you do it. I suppose you really have to have a passion for it.”</p><p>“Well, I won’t argue with that,” Harry said and it was true.</p><p>Dancing really did come easy to Summer.</p><p>From the age of four, Summer’s parents signed her up for dance classes. They were already in their forties by the time they had her and Summer was a hyper child. Dance class seemed to be the easiest way to exhaust her and Summer just stuck with it until she got really serious about acting. She didn’t really retire from it. Summer still used dance classes as exercise but she just wasn’t serious about it like when she was a kid.</p><p>“Still…you seem to have taken up acting,” Summer told him, reminded of the Christopher Nolan film he did last year. “You were really amazing in that film. I’m starting to wonder what can’t you do? Who else can be a pop star one day and a total movie star the next?”</p><p>“Cher? Lady Gaga? David Bowie?” Harry reminded her and Summer laughed.</p><p>“Right…I totally forgot about that. I fucking loved Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper in that movie. I’ve seen it three times,” Summer gushed and Harry smirked at her.</p><p>“I’ve seen it five,” Harry retorted and Summer started laughing. She’d forgotten how funny Harry was. Yes, things didn’t work out between them but she was so glad they stayed friends. Just because they weren’t right for each other romantically, that didn’t mean they couldn’t be friends.</p><p>Not to mention her break-up with Harry was the easiest break-up she ever had. It made her wish that all break-ups were that easy. All her other break-ups definitely weren’t.</p><p>“Love,” Tom interjected as he walked up to the two friends. He thought Summer would look nervous or even embarrassed to be caught flirting with another guy but she didn’t seem to be anything. Her laughter was dying down but there was still a happy, easy-going attitude about her. It pissed Tom off. “It’s getting a bit late. Maybe we should get going.”</p><p>“It’s only eleven, Tom,” Summer told him, having too much fun catching up with Harry to want to leave.</p><p>“Yes, but I’m a bit tired. We both have a long day tomorrow,” Tom told her but something was off about his tone. The smile fell off Summer’s face as she started to look confused by Tom’s odd behavior. He seemed fine just an hour ago.</p><p>“You know, it is getting rather late. I was thinking of heading out myself,” Harry said after taking a glance at Tom and then returning his attention to Summer. He could sense a bit of trouble in paradise and Harry certainly didn’t want to get in the middle. Harry had always gotten the notion that Tom was a bit uncomfortable with his and Summer’s friendship. “It was nice seeing you again, Summer Sunshine.”</p><p>“It was nice seeing you too, Harry,” Summer told him as she bid her old friend goodnight before turning to look at her boyfriend in confusion. She really didn’t understand his weirdness…even though she might’ve had the slightest suspicion.</p>
<hr/><p>“Summer Sunshine?” Tom questioned in annoyance as they got home from the function.</p><p>Summer and Tom had taken an Uber home from the party. He’d been quiet the whole ride home. Summer threw her purse on the couch and sighed. She was starting to realize what this was all about so she prepared herself for another fight. They seemed to be fighting a lot lately and Summer didn’t know why. Everything had been going really well lately but there was starting to be little problems here and there popping up in the relationship.</p><p>First it was simple little things.</p><p>Tom left his dirty clothes on the floor instead of the hamper.</p><p>Summer left all the remnants from her eyeshadow palettes all over the bathroom counter and sink.</p><p>Then things got bigger.</p><p>Tom said they’d go on vacation alone together in between movies but somehow his training took priority instead.</p><p>Summer wanted to move back to the states someday to be closer to her family while Tom wanted to stay in London to be closer t his.</p><p>Now it was Tom’s jealous side which showed up whenever a famous good-looking guy talked to Summer. Like, he thought Summer would run off with this random guy and throw everything they had away. It got so bad that Summer always felt the need to tell Tom where she was going or who she was going with when he wasn’t around. Almost like he was a parent which was something she never even had to do with her actual parents.</p><p>“What now?” Summer said tiredly because she was honestly getting sick of all the fighting. Tom scoffed.</p><p>“Summer Sunshine, it was so good seeing you again,” Tom said as he mimicked Harry’s Cheshire accent before dropping it and glaring at her. “He was flirting with you, Summer.”</p><p>“Don’t be ridiculous, Tom,” Summer told him. She really didn’t want another fight. It felt like things were going so well this month between them…until now.</p><p>“And you were flirting back,” Tom accused and Summer looked back at him in disbelief.</p><p>“You’re kidding me right now, right?” Summer said in an annoyed tone. He wasn’t seriously accusing her of flirting with Harry? That was stupid. They were just laughing and talking. “I was not in any way flirting with Harry. The fact that you would even think that is both offensive and stupid.”</p><p>“Summer, I saw you two flirting with my own eyes. It was right there in front of me,” Tom snapped, looking annoyed that Summer was so blatantly denying the flirting. She was treating him like he was being ridiculous and Tom knew he wasn’t.</p><p>“So what am I supposed to do, Tom? Just not talk to him anymore…Harry who I’ve known since way before I ever met you. I’m supposed to just drop him?” Summer questioned, not knowing what the hell Tom wanted from her. “We’ve been friends for years now.”</p><p>“Yeah and it’s completely normal to be friends with your ex-boyfriend,” Tom said sarcastically and Summer rolled her eyes. This was so stupid and he was being so immature. “Do you see me and my ex being friends?”</p><p>“What? The one ex you have?” Summer threw back at him and Tom shook his head. “Are you ever not going to have a problem with this? People are friends with their exes all the time.”</p><p>“Um…Ross and Rachel? Jess and Nick?” Tom told a very confused Summer. “All people who dated and broke up while remaining friends before getting back together and staying together forever.”</p><p>“Okay, you’re talking about tv shows, Tom. It’s not real life,” Summer said bitterly. She couldn’t believe he was relating her and Harry to a bunch of fiction. “I don’t know if you realize this but we live in the real world.”</p><p>“It still applies and it can still happen in real life,” Tom argued before continuing with his side of things. The side that he knew was rational. “I just find it weird that you and Harry kissed and had sex but you’re still friends.”</p><p>“We dated for a few months. It’s not like we were married,” Summer defended yet Tom was still angry about the friendship. “We’re friends but it’s not like we’re best friends that hang out all the time. Maybe it would be weird if we were but I haven’t seen him in a year so I don’t think it’s weird that I randomly bumped into him at this party and talked to him for a few minutes.”</p><p>“Well, I think that Harry is interested in a little more than friendship,” Tom said bitterly and Summer glared at him. He was being so infuriating that she could barely stand to look at him right now. “Maybe you are too.”</p><p>“Are you fucking joking?” Summer said in disbelief but Tom’s angry expression was unwavering. She fully realized that he really was being serious about this. “Do you think if Harry and I harbored any sort of feelings towards each other that I’d be in a relationship with you? That I would’ve move all the way to London and away from all my family just to be with <em>you</em>? That I would’ve given my dog away just to be with you. That I would spend every Christmas here with your family instead of my family. That Harry and I would’ve even broken up in the first place.”</p><p>“I knew you would throw the London thing back in my face,” Tom said, laughing humorlessly. He really should’ve known she’d bring that back up. She always did. “You always bring up the London thing…and the Christmas thing and not to mention the dog thing. You always have to mention how much you’ve given up to be with me.”</p><p>“And how much have you given up to be with me?” Summer retorted and Tom just stared at her, growing quiet. “Because I’ve given up a lot to be with you. My home, my family, my friends, and my own goals in life. Now I apparently can’t even have one guy friend without you losing your shit over it. I have to give you a full debriefing if I ever go anywhere without you.”</p><p>“Love-“ Tom started to say as he realized that maybe he took things too far. Summer just shook her head and walked past him. She was really tired and this fight hadn’t helped. Summer didn’t think it was fair that Tom was so angry with her over nothing when she never got angry with him over the things that actually mattered.</p><p>“I’m going to sleep in the guest bedroom tonight,” Summer told him quietly, not wanting to speak with him anymore in that moment. She was drained from the screaming match. She’d already had enough and she was sure they’d just end up having another fight. “I just need to be alone right now.”</p><p>Tom didn’t say anything as Summer walked down the hallway to finally get some rest after an eventful night. However, neither of them were too worried. Sure, they fought a lot but at the same time they always made up. Tom would get Summer a pizza from her favorite pizza place or Summer would cook Tom his favorite dinner. They would talk things out and then they’d have make-up sex.</p><p>Then another fight would come and the process would start all over again.</p><p>It was just the way they were.</p><p>Summer and Tom.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm also putting Natalie's filmography up. It's a rough filmography because I imagine she did guest spots on tv shows before making it big but I'm just including the major credits like I did with Summer.</p><p>Natalie's Filmography</p><p>(2004) Mean Girls<br/>(2005) The Forty-Year-Old Virgin<br/>(2006) Alpha Dogs<br/>(2006) Marie Antoinette<br/>(2007) Across the Universe<br/>(2007) Death Proof<br/>(2008) Mamma Mia<br/>(2008) The Other Boleyn Girl<br/>(2009) Jennifer's Body<br/>(2009) Up in the Air<br/>(2010) Dear John<br/>(2010) Letters to Juliet<br/>(2010) Iron Man 2<br/>(2012) Avengers<br/>(2012) Les Misérables<br/>(2013) About Time<br/>(2013) Frozen<br/>(2014) Captain America: The Winter Soldier<br/>(2015) Avengers: Age of Ultron<br/>(2016) Captain America: Civil War<br/>(2016) The Jungle Book<br/>(2016) Bad Moms<br/>(2017) A Bad Moms Christmas<br/>(2018) The Isle of Dogs<br/>(2018) Avengers: Infinity War<br/>(2018) Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again<br/>(2019) Avengers: Endgame<br/>(2019) Frozen 2<br/>(2020) Black Widow</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter Eight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A confident Pedro starts to have doubts about his feelings towards Summer after a conversation with a close friend. Summer seeks Zendaya's advice and reveals the identity of the mystery guy she's been keeping a secret.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>2020</strong>
</p><p>Pedro arrived back at Sarah’s place in the midafternoon.</p><p>He didn’t realize it was almost four until he left Summer’s house and checked his phone. The older actor realized that he probably hadn’t slept that late in a long time but he’d had a long night between the party and Summer. He was very reluctant to leave her that afternoon but he had to leave at some point although not before getting Summer’s number and kissing her in her garden as she bid him goodbye.</p><p>Pedro still didn’t understand Summer’s desire to see him again. She was young and probably had a whole line of good-looking young guys knocking on her door but for some reason or other she wanted to see him again. Not that Pedro was complaining. Her age was still a bit concerning to him. Well, maybe not a bit but it had been easy to forget about her age in the midst of their many conversations. He’d talked to her all night about film and music. The same stuff Pedro loved and what Summer felt equally as passionate about. It wasn’t as hard as he thought to not notice the age gap.</p><p>Was it bad that he slept with a twenty-three year old and had plans to see her again in the future? Well, probably but it’s not like it was serious. Pedro had just met her the night before and they only agreed to see each other again. They had a mutual attraction and they were both adults. There was no sense in freaking out about the age gap when they weren’t even in a relationship.</p><p>Pedro would just see Summer again and then take it from there.</p><p>It was that simple.</p><p>If things worked out then great and if they didn’t he’d be fine.</p><p>It wasn’t a big deal.</p><p>Except that Pedro almost felt like it was a bit of a big deal. More than what he was making it out to be.</p><p>“What the hell, Pedro!” Sarah exclaimed as soon as Pedro walked through the door of her house. She was standing in her living room with her arms crossed, fixing Pedro with a glare. Pedro couldn’t remember the last time she looked that mad at him.</p><p>“Good afternoon to you too,” Pedro said sarcastically although he had a feeling what she was angry about. It wasn’t a difficult one to figure out.</p><p>“Don’t act all innocent,” Sarah told him, clearly not in a joking mood. “I was waiting all night for you to come back. When you didn’t show up the first hour, I thought, well, maybe he just had to use the bathroom so Summer invited him in and they got to talking. Then you didn’t show up for fucking fourteen hours and I started to think differently.”</p><p>“Sarah,” Pedro started to say but she didn’t let him finish. She was too pissed off at him at this point.</p><p>“Pedro, she’s twenty-three,” Sarah reminded him, still angry at her friend for his stupidity. “I know you forget how old you are sometimes but you’re forty-four. You’re old enough to be her father.”</p><p>“She said her father was actually a lot older,” Pedro said quietly and Sarah raised her eyebrows.</p><p>“Excuse me?” Sarah said and Pedro nodded but he still looked nervous as he tried to avert his gaze from Sarah’s angry eyes.</p><p>“I said the same thing to her and she said her father had her when he was old so he’s a lot older than me,” Pedro said as he attempted to defend himself. Sarah scoffed.</p><p>“And that makes it okay?” Sarah questioned before shaking her head in disbelief. Out of all the guys she knew, she thought Pedro would be the last one to sleep with a twenty-something year old. He wasn’t that sort of guy. “Look, all you had to do was be the responsible adult and politely tell her no before coming back home. She was all over you all night which is the only reason she wanted you to walk her home.”</p><p>“What?” Pedro questioned and Sarah nodded.</p><p>“You think she honestly wanted to walk home in the cold last night? That girl’s from New Mexico. She can’t even handle anything below 70 degrees,” Sarah told him knowingly as Pedro just stared at her. “Look, Pedro. I’ve known her a long time. Summer’s a great girl and I like her but she’s also crazy. When we used to work together, she’d have a different boyfriend every couple months.”</p><p>“Look, I’m not that innocent either. I slept around a lot too,” Pedro said in defense of Summer and Sarah shook her head.</p><p>“That’s not what I meant. Summer’s not like you. Sleeping around with random girls-“ Sarah started to say and Pedro laughed nervously.</p><p>“I didn’t do that <em>all</em> the time,” Pedro tried to interject but Sarah just rolled her eyes.</p><p>“Anyways, I was saying that Summer didn’t sleep around. She’d just go from relationship to relationship. Every time I saw her, she had a different boyfriend,” Sarah informed her longtime friend. “She met “the one” every other month is what I’m getting at. I don’t like associating the word “flighty” with women because it’s sexist but she fits the definition. Her sister wasn’t happy when she moved in with her last boyfriend after two weeks of dating.”</p><p>“It’s really none of my business,” Pedro said although he had to admit that all this new information was slightly alarming. He hadn’t gotten the impression from Summer that she was the crazy type. She seemed totally normal to him. Sarah sighed before responding.</p><p>“I’m just saying that maybe you’re used to the no strings attached thing but she’s not. Pedro, she’s very young and I don’t think she understands that last night might’ve been a one time thing,” Sarah explained to her ridiculous friend. “As a much older adult, you’re supposed to do the moral thing and turn someone Summer’s age down. You’re not supposed to sleep with her.”</p><p>“I don’t think it’s a one time thing,” Pedro said quietly as he tried to break the news to his friend. Sarah just stared at him. “We made plans to see each other again. Nothing serious.”</p><p>“Oh my god,” Sarah said in surprise, not believing her friend. “Is this a mid-life crisis? Be honest with me, Pedro…are you having a mid-life crisis right now? Because that’s the only thing that explains any of this. This is so unlike you.”</p><p>“I don’t know what it is,” Pedro said, running a hand over his face. He truly didn’t know what it was about Summer that seemed to have pulled him in. Yes, she was gorgeous but Pedro wasn’t shallow. It was a lot more than that. He hadn’t had that much fun with anyone in a long time and he wanted to see her again because of that. “We talked about Argento. I didn’t think anyone her age would be so educated on Argento’s films. Did you know she lives in Jim Morrison’s old house? It’s an actual piece of music history. He and Pamela lived there. He actually wrote Love Street about it-“</p><p>“Pedro, who gives a fuck about Argento and Love Street?” Sarah told him, still believing her friend was losing it. “Join a Dario Argento or Jim Morrison forum if you liked talking about it that much. You don’t have to sleep with a girl half your age just because she likes the same weird stuff as you.”</p><p>“She was really charming. She invited me in to see the bathroom where Jim Morrison wrote poetry on the walls,” Pedro tried to explain to her. Sarah just stared at him in bewilderment. “Then she said she had Bob Dylan’s harmonica. Cameron Crowe gave it to her as a wrap gift. Was I just not supposed to see those things? Not see the Bob Dylan harmonica that Cameron Crowe gave her?”</p><p>“Summer was totally seducing you,” Sarah said as though it was obvious. It honestly kind of was. “She was the one who got me to make you walk her home. I let you do it because I thought you would do the responsible adult thing and leave her there. I didn’t think you would have sex with her. She’s a kid, Pedro, and now you plan on seeing her again?”</p><p>Pedro was a bit surprised at this. It did seem a little manipulative but somehow he didn’t mind being manipulated by Summer. She could manipulate him all she wanted.</p><p>“Why are you being so judgmental? You and Holland are together. It’s an even bigger age difference,” Pedro retorted and Sarah scoffed.</p><p>“It’s totally different,” Sarah told him and Pedro didn’t seem so sure. “I was already in my forties when Holland and I met. I wasn’t twenty-three. You know, it wasn’t that long ago that Summer was a teenager by the way. I would know. I’ve known her since she was a teenager.”</p><p>“It’s a bit unconventional but I don’t know, Sarah,” Pedro said, admitting to himself that it might’ve been a bit wrong. It was weird to think that a few years ago he was in his thirties but a few years ago for Summer was high school. He didn’t really know how to feel about that. It had been easy to forget all of that when he was with her but now the realization was starting to dawn on him. Could Sarah be right? Had he been totally irresponsible and grotesque by sleeping with her? “I feel like we really connected. All this age difference stuff, it didn’t really even matter. I haven’t really had that with anyone in a while. It was nice.”</p><p>“Of course, it was nice. She’s twenty-three. Everything’s perkier, tighter, and toned,” Sarah complained, trying to knock some sense into her friend. “If you’re having a mid-life crisis just buy a fucking sports car, Pedro, like every other guy. Don’t sleep with a girl who wasn’t even alive during the original Star Wars trilogy.”</p><p>“That’s not what I meant. I mean, the sex was really great but I was referring to the fact that I had a lot of fun,” Pedro said awkwardly and Sarah gave him a disgusted look. “Not that kind of fun. Well, that kind of fun too but we talked for hours in-between all the sex and it’s not what I thought talking to a twenty-three year old would be like. It was easy to forget how young she is.”</p><p>“You can’t see her again, Pedro,” Sarah insisted and Pedro sighed. “I’m serious. Summer’s a public figure. Cameras follow her everywhere.”</p><p>“It’s just one date, Sarah. It’s not like I’m asking her to go steady with me. This isn’t the seventh grade,” Pedro retorted and Sarah scoffed.</p><p>“Well, the seventh grade was over thirty years ago for you. It was just ten years ago for her,” Sarah shot back and Pedro glowered at her. “I’m saying that you have no idea how famous that girl is. Those Disney Channel kids are all like that. When we worked together on American Horror Story, the paps used to camp out just outside the set hoping to get some shots of her. It was crazy. You can’t just go on a date with her like any of the women you used to go out with. They’ll find out about you.”</p><p>“Pictures get taken all the time. It's not new to me,” Pedro said quietly even though he was slowly starting to see Sarah’s point. Maybe she was right. He was in over his head with Summer. He liked her a lot but this was something big to consider. “No one really cares about a couple actors getting lunch together or having dinner.”</p><p>“Pedro, she’s not just another actor. Summer used to be on a Disney Channel kids program. That’s how she got famous. She’s a role model to a lot of young people,” Sarah said logically, putting her hands on Pedro’s shoulders. She wanted him to see reason. He had to see how bad of an idea this was. “You've seen how Zach Braff gets so much shit for going out with that English actress and it’s not like she used to be a child actor. She’s an adult and has always been seen as one. People look at Summer and sometimes they still see that kid on that Disney show with Zendaya. How do you think it’ll look when people see you and her together?”</p><p>“Everyone has an opinion,” Pedro said, not being able to think of another response. Sarah shook her head.</p><p>“I just want you to think about this thoroughly. You’ve worked really hard for a long time to get where you are now,” Sarah told him. She was genuinely concerned for him and his career. She watched him struggle for well over twenty years before he finally began to find some success. Sarah couldn’t stand by and watch all of that fade before their very eyes. He’d come so far. “I understand why you like Summer and want to see her again. I know her. She has this way of pulling you into her atmosphere. Even if you only talk to her for a few minutes. Maybe in a perfect world she’d be a decade or two older but it’s not perfect. She’s twenty-three and continuing to see her could be the kind of thing to cause major damage to your career.”</p><p>“I see your point,” Pedro said quietly even though he really didn’t like her point. Sarah sighed before nodding.</p><p>“Look, and even if she wasn’t who she was then it still wouldn’t work with her, right?” Sarah said, trying to comfort him. She could tell that Pedro really clicked with Summer and this news was disappointing to him. “You’re forty-four and you want to settle down. I know you do. She’s twenty-three. Don’t you remember what we were doing when we were twenty-three?”</p><p>Pedro chuckled before nodding.</p><p>“Getting high and partying,” Pedro told her and Sarah laughed.</p><p>“Exactly. She’s not looking to settle down,” Sarah told him, consoling him. Pedro supposed she was right. Summer was young and probably just wanted to have fun. Pedro was looking for something more serious and he was done with all the going out. It wasn’t as if he were a total old man. He still enjoyed going out to the occasional party but just not as much as he used to. “You need to look for age appropriate women. A twenty-three year old isn’t what you need, Pedro.”</p><p>“You’re right,” Pedro finally admitted. He didn't know what he was thinking in even considering texting Summer for that date. Sarah was right. She was completely wrong for him. Too young and too famous. It didn’t matter if the night before was fun and exciting. Pedro shouldn’t have slept with her. He should’ve done the responsible thing by turning her down and leaving.</p><p>Pedro just wished he hadn’t made promises to Summer that he couldn’t keep.</p><p>They were both better off, anyways.</p><p>It’s not like anything could work out between them. It was a fun night Pedro knew he wouldn’t forget for the rest of his life but it was just a night. He needed to move on and find someone who was the right fit for him. He couldn’t afford to waste time with twenty-something-year-olds who wanted to party and have fun.</p><p>Those days were over for Pedro.</p><p>But not for Summer.</p>
<hr/><p>
  <strong>Two Weeks Later</strong>
</p><p>“I’m still trying to decide on a dress with Law Roach for the SAG awards. We’ve narrowed it down to a couple but I might need your second opinion. You’ve always had an eye for fashion,” Zendaya told her longtime friend and former co-star.</p><p>Summer had invited Zendaya over to her place for a late lunch. Zendaya wasn’t in town for long and Summer really wanted to see her before she left. While Summer had taken a lot of time off, Zendaya definitely hadn’t. She was busier than ever and Summer was happy for her. She was finally making the move out of Disney and onto more adult projects.</p><p>Summer struggled to pay attention to the conversation because her mind was on other matters. Like her very Pedro problem for instance. It had been two weeks since that night with Pedro and Summer still hadn’t heard from him. Not a text or a call or anything. Just plain radio silence which Summer was confused about.</p><p>He said he would text her, hadn’t he?</p><p>Pedro said he wanted to see her again. Why would he say that if he didn’t actually want to see her? Why did he ask for her number if he didn’t want to text her about a date? It just didn’t make sense. Is that what guys did? Did they just have sex with a woman and promise to call but never did.</p><p>Maybe she was right.</p><p>Maybe this really was like the movies.</p><p>Or maybe this was just a game. A trick Pedro had up his sleeve because now he was all she could think about. Summer must’ve glanced at her phone all day, every day. She was just hoping to see a text from him or some indication that everything wasn’t one-sided. That she wasn’t crazy for thinking there was something more between them than just sex.</p><p>Summer fully realized she could’ve just gone over to Sarah’s house to see him. She knew he was staying there while he was working on his show but she didn’t want to seem crazy or clingy. Like she was obsessed with him after just one night together even though she low-key was. Pedro seemed to consume her every thought as she replayed the night over and over again in her head. She hadn’t been this hung up on a guy since…well, since Tom so it was kind of a big deal.</p><p>“Are you even listening to me, Summer?” Zendaya asked blankly and Summer finally looked up from her phone. It seemed harder and harder to tear her gaze from it. It was almost like Summer thought the harder she stared at it, the more Pedro would feel inclined to text her. As if staring at the phone was the same thing as putting her hope out into the universe.</p><p>God…she was starting to sound like her sister.</p><p>“What?” Summer questioned, totally at a loss as to what Zendaya was talking about for the past few minutes.</p><p>“I asked if you were listening to me because you keep staring at your phone,” Zendaya said, giving her friend a suspicious look. Summer sighed. “Who did you meet?”</p><p>“Excuse me?” Summer retorted and Zendaya gave her a knowing look.</p><p>“Summer, I’ve known you for almost ten years now. We’re basically sisters,” Zendaya told her and Summer knew there was no way that she could hide anything from her. Her longtime friend just knew her too well. “I also know there’s always a specific reason why you stare at your phone like that. Who’s the guy? Wait…please don’t tell me it’s Tom.”</p><p>“It’s not Tom,” Summer assured her, almost laughing at the thought. Like she would ever go back to him. What happened between them couldn’t be taken back or undone.</p><p>“Good. I’m still fucking pissed at him for what he did,” Zendaya told her and Summer shook her head. “You don’t need to backslide into that relationship.”</p><p>“Just let it go, Daya. It’s between him and me. I don’t want you getting caught up in the middle of it,” Summer told her before trying to assure her friend that she was over Tom. “I’m not in the heartbreak stage anymore. I’m over it. We were both really young, anyways, and it was a fucked up situation. Look, I’ve moved on. I wish him the best in whatever he wants to do but I just don’t think I can be friends with him. Not like Harry. There was a lot of hurt and words said.”</p><p>“I get it but I don’t think I can just pretend to be okay with what he did to you,” Zendaya told her sincerely but Summer sighed. “He’s my friend but you were my friend first.”</p><p>“I uh…I’m fine. It’s okay if you’re friends. I don’t mind it. You work with him and I don’t want you resenting him,” Summer told her because she didn’t want to cause any awkwardness between Zendaya and Tom. “I just don’t think I want to be around him ever again. I’m not going to be hurt if you hang out with him or anything. We shared a lot of friends and I don’t expect any of them to pick sides. I just want everyone to move on because that’s the only way I can completely move on.”</p><p>“I just feel bad because I pushed you into dating him,” Zendaya admitted with a guilty expression on her face. Summer gave her a sympathetic look. She never blamed her for the break-up. “You didn’t want to and you had a lot of good reasons for it. I should’ve just left well enough alone but I didn’t. You ended up getting hurt.”</p><p>“I don’t blame you. If I really didn’t want to start anything with him then I didn’t have to but I did, anyways. It wasn’t because you and Katy told me to go out with him,” Summer reassured her friend. “I’m an adult and I can make my own decisions. Maybe it was for the best. I feel like it’s really made me take a step back and sort out all my priorities.”</p><p>“Really?” Zendaya asked, wanting to make sure Summer wasn’t mad at her for pushing her into dating Tom. Summer smiled and nodded.</p><p>“Yeah, I mean…I think I really gave more than I received. I sacrificed a lot to be with him but he didn’t really do the same for me,” Summer explained to Zendaya who nodded. “We weren’t really equals and I think relationships need more stability. I just gave him too much.”</p><p>“You’re Summer,” Zendaya said as though it were obvious. “You always give it your everything. In everything you do. He was just stupid for not appreciating that or not doing the same for you.”</p><p>“I just feel like I’ve grown a lot in a short timespan,” Summer informed her, still not understanding the past year herself. It was still a lot to process. She’d been through so much. It was almost unbelievable. “It’s funny because I always felt more mature than I was. What with working so young and living in this crazy world. I just thought I was so grown-up before but I don’t think I was. I still don’t think I am. Not entirely.”</p><p>“I never thought you were mature,” Zendaya said with a laugh and Summer playfully glared at her. “I mean, you were the single most boy crazy person I ever met. I can’t believe all the stupid shit you’ve done. It’s a wonder how you didn’t end up in prison. You were in no way mature.”</p><p>“Maybe not but you were always so mature,” Summer said, giving her friend a small smile. It was true. Zendaya and herself were almost like opposites but somehow their friendship still worked for some reason. “You never screwed up like me. You’ve never made any bad decisions. You’ve always been so responsible and adult-like. It’s like you were above all the silliness in our teenage years even though I’m seven months older than you. I’ve always felt like the younger one.”</p><p>“Well, someone has to keep you out of trouble when Natalie’s not around,” Zendaya teased and Summer rolled her eyes. “Natalie is Summer’s full-time keeper but I’m Summer’s back-up keeper.”</p><p>“Don’t worry. I’m done with all the stupid choices,” Summer promised her friend. “I’m a new Summer. Responsible and boring.”</p><p>“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Zendaya said before remembering something from a few minutes ago. She gave her friend another suspicious look. “Wait a minute…there’s a guy.”</p><p>“A guy? What guy?” Summer asked dumbly, trying to avoid the question Zendaya was bound to ask.</p><p>“Yes, that’s why you keep staring at your phone. There’s obviously a guy and if it’s not Tom then who is it?” Zendaya questioned, staring her friend down. Summer actually blushed. “Don’t even try to deny that there’s not a guy.”</p><p>“Fine,” Summer finally confessed. She knew she couldn’t hide this from Zendaya. Her tall friend was bound to pull it from her at one point or another. “But you have to promise you won’t get mad or freak out.”</p><p>“Why would I get mad or freak out?” Zendaya asked in confusion. “I think it’s actually about damn time you get back out there. You’ve been single for a fucking long time. You need to catch a dick.”</p><p>“Oh, don’t worry. I definitely did,” Summer told her friend with a smirk on her face. Zendaya laughed, grinning at her friend. She was intrigued. Zendaya had never seen Summer stay single this long so now she was wondering what kind of guy brought her friend back into it.”</p><p>“Ooh…okay. What’s his name?” Zendaya asked, more than interested in this new mystery guy. She was dying to hear the details. “Hey, maybe we can do a double date thing. You, me, Jacob, and the new guy. We never got to do that before since we never dated anyone at the same time.”</p><p>“So it’s kind of a long story because I sort of slept with him the same night I met him,” Summer told her friend nervously and Zendaya gave her a look of disbelief. “Which I’ve never done. I mean, count me as guilty for going from boyfriend to boyfriend when we were teenagers but one night stand. Definitely not.”</p><p>“So it was a one night stand. You actually had a one night stand?” Zendaya questioned and Summer gave her a sheepish look.</p><p>“Well, I thought so at first but then I actually really started to like him…a lot,” Summer admitted and Zendaya rolled her eyes at that. It was typical of Summer to catch feelings like that. She was the type of person who felt bad for discarded shoes on the side of the road. “Not just because of the sex which was great. He really knows what he’s doing. I mean, you have to imagine how nice it was for me. For the last three years of my life I only had sex with a guy who’s list of sexual partners just had one single name on it. I had to teach him a lot.”</p><p>“Okay, I get it,” Zendaya told her, never liking the way Summer overshared things.</p><p>“No, it was a lot, Daya. You don’t get it,” Summer kept saying while Zendaya would rather not know anything about Summer and Tom’s former sex life. “I felt bad for the last girl but the new one should thank me.”</p><p>“So back to the hot mystery guy,” Zendaya said, not wanting to hear about Tom anymore. Ew. She really didn’t want to think of her idiot of a friend like that. “The sex was great?”</p><p>“It really was but it wasn’t rough or weird like I thought sex with a stranger would be,” Summer told her friend who nodded. Because why would sex with a stranger be weird? Zendaya couldn’t believe her friend sometimes. “He was really sweet and attentive. Like a boyfriend except he’s obviously not my boyfriend…but he could also be so intense and commanding. I don’t know. I also haven’t felt super confident after Tom. When someone cheats on you, it can be a major mind fuck but it was different with him. He made me feel…well, I can’t think of the word for it.”</p><p>“Desired?” Zendaya guessed, giving her friend a smile. She might’ve been skeptical about Summer sleeping with a guy she barely knew but she was really happy that her friend got some of her usual confidence back. She wasn’t Summer without it and she knew how crappy Summer had felt lately because of Tom. Summer nodded.</p><p>“Yes, desired,” Summer said in agreement. “It was that and so much more but not just sex. We talked a lot at the party which is where we met. It was the New Years Eve party Sarah threw but we spent forever discussing Argento and indie horror. I’ve never met any guy who I could talk about that stuff with or who was even interested in Argento.”</p><p>“Really?” Zendaya asked and Summer nodded. She knew how much Summer loved horror movies. The girl could go on and on about horror films. It was good to know that there was someone else out there that could apparently keep up with Summer on that topic of conversation. Zendaya definitely couldn’t.</p><p>“And it was weird but in a good way. I told him about how I would be a makeup artist if I wasn’t an actor and then he wanted me to do his makeup,” Summer relayed the story of her night with Pedro to Zendaya who raised her eyebrows in surprise. “We had sex and then I did his makeup but it was fun. The whole night was like that and we just bantered back and forth. I just haven’t had that much fun with someone in a long time. I can’t stop thinking about it either. Not just about the sex but just…him.”</p><p>“So what’s the problem then?” Zendaya asked her, giving her friend a look. There seemed to be something Summer wasn’t telling her. It was obvious. “I’m assuming there’s some sort of problem.”</p><p>“Well, he’s an actor too,” Summer informed her friend who seemed unbothered by that information. “Which is fine but there’s sort of a bigger issue that I admit has made me think and rethink this whole thing. I don’t think I have a problem with it but you and everyone else might. Especially Natalie. Natalie would fucking kill me if she ever found out.”</p><p>“What is it, Summer?” Zendaya questioned. She just wanted Summer to spit it out. She couldn’t handle the anticipation anymore. “Just tell me.”</p><p>“Okay, so he might be older,” Summer told her hesitantly and Zendaya stared at her for a moment. She considered those words before nodding.</p><p>“Older?” Zendaya inquired and Summer nodded. “Well, okay. I mean, Matty and Richard were both older than you. You’re not that much older now than when you dated Richard but you’ve grown up a lot. Like you said before. I don’t know why you’d think Natalie would freak out about it. She probably just wants you to be happy.”</p><p>“He might be older than Richard,” Summer said quietly and Zendaya tried to analyze the nervous look on her friend’s face.</p><p>“How much older?” Zendaya asked, starting to feel nervous herself at Summer’s weird behavior. This couldn’t be good sign. “Are we talking twelve years or thirteen? That’s not much older than how old Richard was.”</p><p>“Zendaya,” Summer finally said, her gaze meeting her friend’s. “He’s forty-four.”</p><p>A deafening silence fell between the two friends as Zendaya processed those words while Summer waited for her reaction. There was no telling how Zendaya would react to this. Zendaya was the first person Summer told about Pedro. She was hoping for a good reaction but that was doubtful. Summer knew she was probably crazy for liking Pedro as much as she did. Even she could see that.</p><p>“Please tell me you’re joking, Summer,” Zendaya finally said when she could find it in herself to speak again. “You’re not actually serious.”</p><p>“I know it sounds bad but it’s really not,” Summer tried to assure her friend who looked shocked. Zendaya was struggling to believe the fact that Summer was apparently caught up with a man almost twice her age. That was a big fucking deal.</p><p>“Summer, he’s parent aged. That’s bad,” Zendaya told her and Summer shrugged.</p><p>“Not our parents’ age. Our parents are old,” Summer tried to tell her but Zendaya’s mind was still blown over this new information. It was hard to even put together. “I mean, if he had a kid when he was in college then yes…I guess that kid could be our age but he doesn’t have any kids so it doesn’t matter.”</p><p>“Summer, he’s still fucking old,” Zendaya blurted out and Summer swallowed hard. She knew deep down that Zendaya would freak out. Maybe not like Natalie would. Zendaya just seemed concerned. Summer knew her sister would be furious if she ever found out about Pedro. “I can’t believe you slept with someone that old. That’s insane and gross too.”</p><p>“Believe me, it wasn’t gross,” Summer informed her and Zendaya gave her a grossed out look before Summer continued to defend Pedro. “And when we were alone together, I forgot about the age gap. Look, I’m an adult and so is he. It’s not wrong.”</p><p>“Maybe not legally but morally, yes,” Zendaya told her as she started to wonder if Summer truly lost her mind after Tom. This was craziness. “Who is this guy, anyways? Are you dating Leonardo DiCaprio because it sounds like you are. You did that movie with him, right?”</p><p>“He’s not DiCaprio,” Summer told her friend tiredly before trying to think of something Zendaya would’ve known Pedro from. It didn’t take her long to think of something. “Remember Game of Thrones?”</p><p>“Of course.”</p><p>“He played Oberyn.”</p><p>“Okay, I watched Game of Thrones but I’m not obsessed with it. I don’t remember all the characters,” Zendaya told her and Summer sighed before elaborating.</p><p>“Oberyn was the guy who got his eyes gouged out by the Mountain,” Summer told her and Zendaya gasped. She did know who that was. It made Zendaya even more shocked that Summer slept with him because he definitely was way too old for her.</p><p>“Him? Summer!” Zendaya said in shock and Summer rolled her eyes.</p><p>“Come on, Daya, you agreed with me when I said he was hot,” Summer pointed out and Zendaya scoffed in disbelief. “We watched that one episode together, you know which one, and we both agreed.”</p><p>“I didn’t mean in real life,” Zendaya hissed. Just when she thought Summer wasn’t making anymore crazy decisions anymore, here was the craziest thing Summer had ever done. “I say the same thing about Idris Elba but that doesn’t I’d do him in real life. He’s old too.”</p><p>“Zendaya, please be with me on this,” Summer pleaded with her friend. She really didn’t want Zendaya to be against her on this. She knew everyone else would probably be against this but she didn’t want Zendaya to be one of them. “I really like him and I want to see him again. I know the age gap is huge but it honestly doesn’t bother me as much as I thought it would. He’s the first person I’ve had anything like this with in a really long time and I really can’t find it in me to care about his age. It doesn’t outweigh everything else.”</p><p>“I’m sorry, Summer, but I’m having a hard time processing this,” Zendaya told her, still in disbelief over the whole situation. It was crazy. “You just told me you were through making crazy decisions. Well, this is the craziest shit you’ve ever done.”</p><p>“It’s not serious or anything. I just want to see him again,” Summer told her friend, knowing that this probably sounded insane. “I wanted to tell you because I’ve been dealing with this on my own and you’re one of my closest friends. I always tell you everything.”</p><p>“Okay…fine,” Zendaya said, trying to be supportive of her friend instead of worried. Summer hadn’t dated anyone in a really long time so maybe she really did like this guy if she wanted to see him again. “Just answer some questions for me.”</p><p>“I can do that,” Summer said, nodding as she felt a wave of relief wash over her.</p><p>“Are you the first younger woman he’s been with?”</p><p>“Yes. He told me so and Sarah also mentioned something like that,” Summer answered and Zendaya felt a bit better at that. There were a lot of older guys in Hollywood who were famous for never dating women over the age of twenty-five. Zendaya didn’t want her friend to fall prey to a guy like that.</p><p>“That’s good. It would be really creepy and weird if you weren’t. Guys like that are the worst,” Zendaya said, starting to calm down from the initial bomb Summer dropped on her. “Did he pursue you?”</p><p>“No, it was actually the other way around,” Summer informed her friend. “He walked me home and I invited him in. I initiated everything and he asked for consent at every turn. It was actually very sweet and I felt safe with him.”</p><p>“I’m glad. That’s a relief. All of it was consensual and you were in a safe environment,” Zendaya said as though she were trying to make herself feel better. “What’s his name?”</p><p>“Pedro,” Summer answered and Zendaya nodded, still taking everything in.</p><p>She was still worried about her friend but, at least, now she knew that Summer hadn’t been taken advantage of by one of those creepy gross old actors. The guy seemed normal enough based off Summer’s description of him and if he wasn’t in his forties then Zendaya would’ve been super excited for her friend. However, Summer obviously needed Zendaya as a friend so she would just have to be supportive in this even if she didn’t necessarily like it.</p><p>“So New Years Eve was, like, two weeks ago,” Zendaya told her friend and Summer sighed. She was more than aware of this small detail. “And you said you haven’t seen him again so what’s going on with that?”</p><p>“That’s what I don’t know,” Summer said. She looked a bit disappointed. “I gave him my phone number before he left the next day.”</p><p>“The next day? Not morning? Can old guys really go that long?” Zendaya asked and Summer playfully glared at her before hitting her on the arm.</p><p>“Shut up,” Summer told her before shaking her head. “We talked about it not being a one time thing and he was the one who brought up seeing each other again. I forgot where I left my phone so I just gave him my number instead and he promised to text me. Well, this was two weeks ago now and he hasn’t texted me.”</p><p>“I hate to say this, Summer, because I can tell you really like him but if it was two weeks ago then he’s probably not going to text you,” Zendaya told her gently. “He’s probably just an asshole who wanted to know what it was like to sleep with someone our age.”</p><p>“Look, I invited him in so I knew he probably wouldn’t be interested in anything else,” Summer said as she continued to try and understand why Pedro hadn’t texted. “He’s the one who said that he liked me and he wanted to see me again. He could’ve just said that it was fun and left but he didn’t. Why would he say he wanted to see me again and just not text me?”</p><p>“I don’t know why guys do the things they do, Summer,” Zendaya said. She couldn’t help but notice how her friend seemed really torn up over this guy. She hadn’t seen Summer like this in a while. It was weird that it was over a guy that was probably totally wrong for her. “So there’s absolutely no way of getting in touch with him then so-“</p><p>“Well, there’s one way,” Summer mentioned and Zendaya raised an eyebrow. She sighed. “He and Sarah are really close friends. That’s why he was at Sarah’s party. He’s been staying with her while he’s been working here in LA.”</p><p>“Wait? So he’s literally down the road?” Zendaya questioned and Summer nodded. “Then why don’t you just go over there and ask that asshole why he’s not texting you? I mean, you said he was the one who brought up how you should see each other again. It’s not like you just made an assumption. It sounds like he’s leading you on.”</p><p>“I don’t want to go over there. He’ll think I’m crazy and really never text me then. Can you imagine?” Summer told her and Zendaya sighed. “Maybe he thinks I’m too immature.”</p><p>“He didn’t think you were too immature to have sex with,” Zendaya quipped but smiled sheepishly when Summer glared at her. “It’s been two weeks, Summer. If he hasn’t text you by now then he probably won’t. He’s too old, anyways. Just move on and hopefully on to a guy closer to your age.”</p><p>“I just really liked him, Daya,” Summer said and her friend rolled her eyes. She really hoped this didn’t mean old Summer was returning. The same Summer who fell in and out of love at the drop of a hat.</p><p>“How good could he have been?” Zendaya asked in genuine disbelief. Summer slapped her arm again. “What? I’m serious. He’s old. Don’t they have trouble, you know...getting it up.”</p><p>“He’s forty-four. Not seventy,” Summer retorted but went back to seeming infatuated with this guy again when it seemed like it was all she wanted talk about. Zendaya supposed she was just going to have to put up with it. “But I don’t know. I can’t stop looking at my phone now. I don’t remember the last time a guy’s made me this crazy. Not since…”</p><p>“Not since Tom,” Zendaya guessed and Summer grew a bit quieter at the mention of Tom. She shook her head.</p><p>“Tom was different. I didn’t really look at him like that for a really long time,” Summer explained which made sense to Zendaya. Summer and Tom had been friends for a while before anything happened between them. Nothing would’ve happened if it hadn’t been the constant goading of friends on both sides. “That night with Pedro was completely different. Everything just fell into place and it wasn’t complicated. There was no games or second-guessing myself.”</p><p>“You could always slid into his DMs, you know,” Zendaya suggested as if the thought hadn’t occurred to Summer. “I know you have a private Instagram. Does he have an Instagram too?”</p><p>“He does,” Summer confirmed before a nervous look came over her face. “I haven’t exactly slid into his DMs. Not that. I just thought that would be weird.”</p><p>“What do you mean by that? If you haven’t slid into his DMs then what did you do?” Zendaya asked and when Summer blushed, Zendaya knew exactly what she did. “You’ve been Instagram stalking him, haven’t you?”</p><p>“A little bit,” Summer admitted and Zendaya sighed. “I couldn’t help it. We talked a lot that night amongst other things but there’s still a lot I don’t know about him. I didn’t google him or anything like that but I just scrolled through his posts. By the way, did you know he uses he/him pronouns in his Instagram handle?”</p><p>“What?” Zendaya asked in disbelief. “At his age? That’s strangely progressive. Guys our age don’t even do that.”</p><p>“I know. He’s almost too perfect,” Summer told her friend and then felt another wave of disappointment wash over her. She remembered again that he hadn’t texted her since that night and morning they spent together. “I’m already crazy about him and I barely know him.”</p><p>“Yeah just like when we were kids,” Zendaya told her, referring to Summer’s old ways.</p><p>“Except that I’m not a kid anymore and that night wasn’t just sex to me,” Summer pointed out as she continued thinking about Pedro. She was starting to feel like this was going to be one of those things. She couldn’t just let go of that night.</p><p>“Okay…so you really like this guy, then?” Zendaya finally asked her once she finally realized that Summer wasn’t going to just forget about this guy. Her friend nodded and Zendaya sighed heavily. Summer was right. Her sister was totally going to murder her for this. “Then the only thing you should do is nothing.”</p><p>“What?” Summer asked in confusion and Zendaya nodded.</p><p>“Yeah, I mean, you gave this guy your number which is as much as you should have to do,” Zendaya elaborated as Summer listened to her. Summer might’ve had more dating experience but Zendaya was always a voice of reason and way more rational than she was. “He has your number and if he’s not a total asshole then he should be the one to put in the effort. He should slide into your DMs and he should be the one to come here with a pretty good excuse why he’s ghosted you for two weeks.”</p><p>“But how do I know he’ll do any of that?” Summer asked her and Zendaya shrugged.</p><p>“Well, you don’t but I don’t think you should have to do all the work,” Zendaya informed her as Summer listened to her intently. “Right? He’s lucky that you’re into him because you’re greatest person I know. He’s lucky you gave him the time of day. You can have anyone you want. This is your world and he’s just living in it.”</p><p>“Yeah, if you can just reel it back a bit,” Summer told her, observing how Zendaya could go a little too far as the supportive best friend sometimes. If there was such a thing as too far, that is.</p><p>“I’m just saying that if he wants to not text you then fine. Wait for him to come to you,” Zendaya said as she gave Summer advice. “He should do the rest of the work. If he texts you then that’s great but if he continues to ghost you then fuck him.”</p><p>“You know what? You’re right,” Summer finally admitted as she realized it was pretty sad to just be sitting there for the past two weeks waiting by her phone. Hoping for some sort of text or acknowledgement from him.</p><p>Summer should’ve known by now that she couldn’t just give men everything. Not her time, attention, and devotion if they didn’t want to give anything in return. She’d done that in each of her past relationships and Summer knew by now that it wasn’t healthy to keep doing the same thing with every man. It wasn’t fair to her.</p><p>“If Pedro is interested in us seeing each other again then he needs to make the next move,” Summer said in agreement. Zendaya seemed satisfied with Summer’s answer. “I’m tired of playing games. You’re right. I deserve better.”</p><p>“You do and if this old guy doesn’t want to see you again then he’s stupid,” Zendaya told her friend, giving her a comforting smile. “Look at the upside of this. You’re still a single woman and you’re about to hit up the SAG awards next week. You can forget all about Pedro and have fun. We’ll both have fun there. I promise.”</p><p>“Really?” Summer asked nervously. "You don't have a hundred other important things to do?"</p><p>“Friends come first,” Zendaya told her, wrapping an arm around Summer. “You haven’t been to a huge party like that in forever. Not with all the traveling you’ve done lately. We’ll have fun and you can get as drunk as you want. I won’t drink because someone needs to be sober to take you home but you can have as much to drink as you want.”</p><p>“Are you sure?” Summer asked and Zendaya nodded.</p><p>“You deserve to have fun. Think of this as your belated twenty-first birthday party,” Zendaya told her excitedly. “We never got to celebrate it since you were living in London at the time.”</p><p>“Thank you, Zendaya,” Summer told her with a small smile on her face. She really appreciated being back in LA where most of her friends still lived and then having the support of her friends. She’d spent almost three years living in London where all her friends were her boyfriend’s friends. Summer never really had any friends of her own. It was nice being back with her real friends and having them back in her life like this. Summer had missed them.</p><p>Especially Zendaya.</p><p>“You don’t need to thank me,” Zendaya said as she returned Summer’s smile. “You’ve done the same thing with me when I just needed to let loose and have some fun. It’s about time I do the same for you.”</p><p>“Well, I still appreciate it,” Summer said because she really did. She was so glad to be home again. To be back in LA because it was home, after all. It had been home since she was fourteen and maybe it would always be home. It wasn’t as bad as people thought. Not when you had a life there. “So…lets talk about what’s going on with you and Jacob.”</p><p>“Do we have to?” Zendaya questioned, rolling her eyes and laughing. She was never one to talk about boys like Summer always did. Summer nodded.</p><p>“Yes, we do. It’s a big deal. You haven’t dated anyone in forever and I really want to meet him,” Summer insisted and Zendaya should’ve known she wouldn’t have let the boyfriend thing slide. It was Summer, after all. She always made a big deal whenever Zendaya started seeing a new guy. She’d get more excited about it than Zendaya would. “I can’t believe I haven’t met him yet. Will he be at the after-party?”</p><p>“Maybe…” Zendaya trailed off. Summer grinned at her.</p><p>“Is maybe a yes, then?” Summer questioned, feeling giddy at the idea of meeting her friend’s new boyfriend. She hadn’t really been a fan of the last one who Summer didn’t think was good enough for Zendaya. But then again, it was rare that Zendaya ever found any of Summer’s boyfriends good enough for her either. Tom had been the only one but that ship sailed a long time ago.</p><p>“Fine. He’ll be there,” Zendaya finally said and Summer acted like this was the best news she’d ever heard. “But you have to be chill about it. You can’t be you and hound him with questions.”</p><p>“I can be chill,” Summer told her with a serious look on her face. Zendaya didn’t look like she believed her. “What? I can. I promise I will ask him a normal amount of questions and I’ll be so chill about it. The chillest. I promise.”</p><p>“You’re so weird,” Zendaya said, laughing at the blonde. Summer pretended to be annoyed with her but soon broke out into laughter as well. The two friends were well into their twenties now but it was almost as if nothing had changed from their teenage years were they did the same thing. Their friendship was just as simple and close as it had been then.</p><p>It was a blessing.</p><p>Summer was grateful for their friendship and promised herself that she would never move to another foreign country with some guy, getting consumed by yet another relationship. She was done with that part of her life. Zendaya was right. Friends come first and she wasn’t going to get consumed by another relationship.</p><p>Summer could, at least, try to do better by herself with that.</p><p>Or so she hoped.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So this chapter might be a bit disappointing for people that were hoping that Summer and Pedro would see each other right away again but it seemed necessary. Pedro wasn't just going to see Summer again without giving their age difference some more thought because it's a bit of an issue. I promise they'll see each other again next chapter. I'm already working on it and I can't wait to finish it. Thanks again for all the amazing reviews. Please let me know what you think of the new chapter.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter Nine</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Summer attends the SAG awards as a presenter and her brother-in-law's date for the evening when her sister can't make it. She's in for a surprise when her agent informs her of who she's co-presenting with.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>It's been a bit of a wait for the new chapter but it ended up being very long. Hopefully this makes up for the lack of Summer and Pedro interaction during the past couple chapters. There's a lot of it in this chapter. Some Chris and Zendaya in this one too.</p><p>Thanks for all the reviews and kudos. It really means a lot and I'm so happy about all the love this story has been getting. Anyways, let me know what you guys think. Thanks again.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Summer stared at the email her agent sent her.</p><p>Somehow she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her even though she had perfect vision. She’d always had perfect vision. A trait that her sister envied, having inherited their mother’s eyesight while Summer seemed to have inherited their father’s weirdly amazing eyesight.</p><p>Still…the email was starting to give her doubts because surely she had to be imagining this. Because fate could definitely not be this cruel or ironic. It just couldn’t.</p><p>Summer had not heard from Pedro in nearly three weeks and had finally accepted that she would never hear from him again. That she was just another notch on his belt and she played the part of the stupid girl yet again by believing that night was anything more than sex to him. Summer had played the fool many times in her life to men and their cute smiles added onto charming words but she thought she’d grown up from that. Only to realize that she was just as stupid as the teenaged version of herself.</p><p>Maybe she hadn’t gotten wiser, after all.</p><p>So you could imagine her surprise when she got an email from her agent informing her that she would be presenting the award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a television movie or limited series. This wasn’t so much the surprising part. Summer was aware that she would be presenting an award at the SAG awards but it was more of who she would be presenting the award with. That’s what had her so nervous and anxious.</p><p>
  <em>Summer, </em>
</p><p>
  <em>As you already know, you’ve been kindly asked by the SAG-AFTRA to present an award for the televised ceremony. They have released the category information as well as other presenters today. You will be presenting the female actor in a television movie or limited series category with Pedro Pascal. I’ve enclosed a link in this email of his filmography in case you’re not completely familiar with his work although I’m sure you are.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>If you could just give me a call next week so I can verify some scheduled appearances for you in regards to the<strong> Emma</strong> press tour. I understand London is out of the question for you but I would like to verify the LA and New York appearances. </em>
</p><p>
  <em>I hope you have a brilliant time at the SAG after-party. You deserve it.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>With Kind Regards, </em>
</p><p>
  <em>Rick</em>
</p><p>That was the email her agent Rick sent her a few days ago. He also enclosed other information about the ceremony like the schedule but Summer couldn’t really bring herself to care much. Not after realizing that she would be presenting an SAG award with the guy she slept with three weeks ago. The same guy who never texted her or even acknowledged her existence.</p><p>It occurred to Summer that she was going to have to not just see Pedro at this event, that she hadn’t even been aware that he was attending, but she was also going to have to present an award with him. How embarrassing for Summer. That she made a fool of herself by staring at her phone for three weeks and now she was going to be forced to face him in the front of the whole world.</p><p>Well, maybe the whole world was being a bit dramatic.</p><p>People mostly only cared about the Oscars and Golden Globes. No one, except everyone who worked in the industry, really cared about the SAG awards. Summer was still a bit worried regardless of the fact.</p><p>What would she even say to him?</p><p>Summer knew there was an awkward moment before and after the presenters presented the award where they had to wait backstage. Usually she always chatted with the other presenter, sometimes making small talk if she didn’t know the person or joking around with them if she did know them. However, there was nothing in her experience that told her what to do in a situation like this one.</p><p>Not when she slept with her co-presenter and he’d been ghosting her ever since.</p><p>Summer just knew she was so fucked.</p><p>The only good thing that came from this entire experience was that it was going to make Summer swear off actors for good. Getting involved with other actors only seemed to make for awkward situations like this one.</p><p>Summer just prayed that Pedro would pretend like nothing happened.</p><p>It would be her saving grace and the only thing that would spare her of any further humiliation.</p>
<hr/><p>“Who are you looking for?” Chris asked his nervous looking sister-in-law. He’d caught Summer gazing around the room a couple times now. They were currently seated at their assigned table in the large room where the ceremony was taking place. Summer was attending the ceremony as not just a presenter but her brother-in-law’s date. Natalie was currently back in New York with the kids so Summer stepped in as Chris’s date.</p><p>It wasn’t unusual.</p><p>They were family, after all.</p><p>“What?” Summer questioned, pulling her attention back to him. She had spent the first half an hour of the show searching for Pedro in the crowd of people but she couldn’t spot him. It didn’t help that she had no idea where he was sitting or what he was wearing.</p><p>“You keep looking around the room,” Chris elaborated and Summer blushed. She hadn’t realized she’d been so obvious about it. No one else seemed to be paying attention to them. Summer was sitting amongst Chris’s <em>Knives Out </em>co-stars. Ana de Armas, Daniel Craig, Lakeith Stanfield, and Katherine Langford along with their dates for the evening. “Who the hell are you looking for? Zendaya? She’s only a couple tables over.”</p><p>“No. I was looking for…Jennifer Aniston,” Summer said as she quickly thought of a celebrity name. Jennifer Aniston was here, after all. “You know how much I love Friends.”</p><p>“If you say so,” Chris said, sounding a bit uncertain as he gave Summer an odd look. “You’ve been acting weird all night. Jumpy. It’s not like you.”</p><p>“I’m just nervous. I haven’t had to speak in public like this in a long time,” Summer excused even though she knew the excuse was lame. It was a bit pathetic. Summer was supposed to be actor yet this was probably some of the worst acting she’d ever done. “I’ve been off for so long now.”</p><p>“You’ll be fine,” Chris assured her. He gathered that she did seem nervous but he wasn’t sure he believed that her odd behavior was only dedicated to nerves. Summer had been acting weird since the night before when they met up for dinner downtown LA. “Who are you presenting with again, anyways?”</p><p>Summer swallowed hard. Here came the dreaded name of the evening. The very thing she texted Zendaya in a panic about right after her agent informed her about her co-presenter. Her friend told her to calm down and that it wasn’t a big deal. Pedro was the one who should be embarrassed, after all.</p><p>It made sense but it definitely didn’t stop Summer from worrying about seeing him.</p><p>“Pedro Pascal,” Summer finally said and Chris nodded.</p><p>“Well, at least you know who that is,” Chris told her and Summer whipped her head back around to give her brother-in-law an insulted look.</p><p>“Excuse me?” Summer shot back. Chris gave her a confused look, not understanding her weirdness.</p><p>“I said, at least you know who that is,” Chris said slowly and Summer was beginning to realize she’d misunderstood him. “Because we saw Narcos. Right?”</p><p>“Oh…yes, you’re right. I do know who he is,” Summer said quietly as her gaze fell to her champagne glass in front of her. Chris was still a bit concerned for her but he dismissed it as Summer being stressed out from the move back to LA. It was definitely a change of pace moving back home after living overseas for a couple years.</p><p>“It’ll be fine,” Chris told her once more. “We just have to get through this long ass ceremony and then you can just relax at the after-party. Hang out with some of your friends instead of me.”</p><p>“I like hanging out with you,” Summer told him with a small smile. Chris gave her a doubtful look.</p><p>“You don’t have to be nice to me. I already married your sister, remember?” Chris joked and Summer rolled her eyes playfully at him. He could be a dork sometimes but Summer really loved him.</p><p>Yes, she told him everything but even Summer was having hesitations in telling Chris about Pedro. He wasn’t one to keep things from Natalie and Summer didn’t want to put him in an awkward position because Natalie was never going to find out. Because if Natalie never found out then Natalie would never kill her.</p><p>It looked like there was a good chance of Natalie never finding out since Pedro never sent her any texts about seeing each other again. As much as she was hurt by him ghosting her, she could see the silver lining in it. At least her sister would never find out and murder her.</p><p>There was always a bright side, right?</p>
<hr/><p>“Miss McGrath, right this way,” One of the coordinators for the ceremony said as they led Summer backstage to wherever the hell they were taking her. Summer was just doing what she was supposed to. It was the only thing she could do at public events like these. Summer was comfortable on movie sets but anywhere as fast-moving and insane as this place, she was totally out of her element.</p><p>“Mr. Pascal is already waiting and we’re still currently on pause for commercial break,” The coordinator, Sydney, explained to Summer as they were walking. It was a lot to take in but Summer thought she could manage it. “I’m sure you’ve done this before. When you and Mr. Pascal hear your cue, you’ll both walk out on to the mainstage and stop at your mark. The teleprompter will do the rest.”</p><p>“Got it. Thank you,” Summer told the older woman who smiled before returning her attention to her iPad. She didn’t think she was rude or anything. The woman was probably stressed out and on a very tight schedule. Especially since there had been no rehearsal for the presenters. It wasn’t the Oscars so they were even more limited on time. There was really only one shot at presenting which added pressure to the evening.</p><p>“And here we are,” Sydney said leading Summer to an area backstage that was just behind the entrance that led out to the mainstage but she paid no mind to the hustle and bustle backstage. That’s not what had her attention. It was more of the person standing in the midst of all the hustle and bustle.</p><p>Pedro.</p><p>The very person she’d been dreading to see the entire evening.</p><p>He looked different than he did the last time she saw him. His patchy beard was less patchy and he looked a lot more formal in his suit. Summer admired how handsome he looked in the silky silver suit jacket he wore and paired together with glasses. Why did he look so good? Summer had been hoping he wasn’t as sexy in real life as he was in her memories.</p><p>Summer tried to force herself not to blush under his intense gaze. His eyes were on her and Summer couldn’t read the look in them. Probably because she didn’t really know him that well. She did sleep with a guy she barely knew, after all.</p><p>“Summer, this is Pedro Pascal,” Sydney introduced, thinking that the two actors didn’t know each other whatsoever. “Pedro, this is Summer McGrath.”</p><p>“It’s nice to meet you,” Pedro told her with a small but awkward smile. He held out his hand for her to shake and Summer just stared at him.</p><p>Was he seriously pretending like he didn’t know her?</p><p>Summer had hoped that their reunion wouldn’t be awkward or weird but she really didn’t expect this. She didn’t expect Pedro to pretend like he’d never met her. Summer didn’t think she preferred this to him acknowledging the fact they had sex. In fact, Summer felt a bit like a dirty secret.</p><p>It felt awful when he ghosted her but somehow this was even worse.</p><p>“Nice to meet you too,” Summer managed to say even though the enthusiasm was gone from her voice. She let go of Pedro’s hand almost as soon as they touched as if his hand burned her. It wasn’t that long ago when their hands were entwined when he was in her bed and she was under him.</p><p>“So now that you two are acquainted, I’m just going to check on something with Stephanie real quick. I’ll come back before your cue,” Sydney promised them, giving them another smile before leaving to talk to whoever Stephanie was. Summer and Pedro were left to their own devices backstage as they waited for their cue.</p><p>There was a long awkward pause of silence before Pedro finally cleared his throat and spoke. It didn’t seem like Summer was going to say anything. Pedro didn’t think he helped anything by pretending like they hadn’t met before. He honestly didn’t know why he did that. Well, he did. He panicked and didn’t know how to explain how they knew each other. He also didn’t want to embarrass Summer. Pedro had the feeling that she might’ve felt embarrassed of him.</p><p>What story could he have come up with, anyways?</p><p>Did they even need a story?</p><p>Pedro knew there wasn’t an excuse for his behavior towards Summer. He never texted like he promised he would and judging by the look on her face, she hadn’t forgotten like he thought she would. Pedro just assumed she would go about her life and give him very little thought.</p><p>“You look beautiful,” Pedro remarked and he meant it. He was guilty of staring earlier when he caught a glimpse of her at her table sitting alongside her brother-in-law.</p><p>Summer was wearing a stunning pink rosé colored strapless floor-length gown embroidered with lace. There was a thin silver belt around the waist to accentuate the gown’s skirt which flowed openly from her waist. The neckline was plunging and showed off her ample cleavage. Something Pedro briefly glanced down at and then quickly proceeded to keep his eyes focused on her face. It was no easy task given the fact that she didn’t seem all that pleased to see him.</p><p>“I know,” Summer replied shortly because she didn’t need him to tell her that. She had a gorgeous dress sent to her from Reem Acra and spent all day under the care of a makeup artist and hair stylist. Of course, she looked beautiful. Summer didn’t spent hours in a chair getting her hair and makeup done to look awful.</p><p>Maybe she was being a bit bratty but Summer thought she was entitled to be bratty. She was really hurt and pissed off by the way he’d been treating her. Like she was a dirty secret he wanted no part of. Summer wouldn’t have minded it if he made it clear from the beginning that he just wanted sex from her but he hadn’t. Instead he made her believe he was interested in something more.</p><p>Zendaya was right.</p><p>Fuck him.</p><p>Summer spent weeks waiting by her phone for him to text or call but she got nothing from him. Absolutely nothing. She didn’t deserve to waste anymore time thinking about him or pining over him. Not if he obviously didn’t reciprocate her feelings. Summer was just another notch on his belt.</p><p>“Listen, I’m sorry,” Pedro finally said, knowing fully well why she was being frosty with him. He wasn’t stupid. He knew he hadn’t called like he promised he would.</p><p>Sarah got to him with all her reasoning and logic.</p><p>Pedro couldn’t help but feel like anything more between he and Summer could never happen. He knew deep down Sarah had a point even though he didn’t like that point. However, it didn’t excuse the fact that he never called Summer to tell her why he didn’t think it was a good idea seeing each other again. Pedro knew it was a cowardly thing to do but he didn’t know what to say to her.</p><p>Mostly because he wanted to see her again and knew that he shouldn’t.</p><p>“I’m sorry for not calling like I said I would,” Pedro continued to apologize to her and Summer didn’t want to hear it. If they hadn’t been forced into presenting this award together, Summer knew that she probably wouldn’t have ever seen Pedro again. “I intended to.”</p><p>“Well, you obviously didn’t,” Summer told him, not wanting to hear any apologies out of him. He didn’t really owe her an explanation. They’d only slept together, after all. It wasn’t as if he was her boyfriend or anything like that. Yet somehow Summer still felt hurt by his rejection. “Since you didn’t call.”</p><p>“I wanted to,” Pedro told her sincerely, his dark eyes looking into her blue ones. “I really did but…”</p><p>“What?” Summer questioned, raising an eyebrow at him. Pedro sighed.</p><p>“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Pedro told her and Summer stared back at him. “For us to see each other again. Not that way. I shouldn’t have gone home with you in the first place.”</p><p>“I thought you said you didn’t have any regrets?” Summer questioned, wishing that he’d just continued ignoring her rather than giving her an explanation. This was so much worse. Summer had been the regret of all her exes. She didn’t want to become someone else’s regret all over again. Pedro shook his head.</p><p>“I didn’t. It was a lovely night and if you were maybe ten or twenty years older then there wouldn’t be an issue,” Pedro explained to her with a regretful look on his face but he didn’t regret the night they spent together. He just regretted the fact that he was forty-four and she was twenty-three. “I’m a lot older than you and I should’ve known better. It wasn’t responsible for me to go home with you. I feel like I took advantage of you.”</p><p>Summer stared at him in silence for a moment, not believing this bullshit. This was the reason he hadn’t called her? Because he felt “irresponsible” and he seemed to have some sort of moral compass about sleeping with a younger woman. It was so typical after dating guys who could really give a shit less about her age back when she was still a teenager, that as an adult she’d meet a guy who had a conscience about that sort of thing.</p><p>“Please don’t patronize me,” Summer told him, scoffing at his words. Pedro gave her a confused look. “Men don’t care about that sort of thing.”</p><p>“What?” He asked her and Summer nodded.</p><p>“I’ve never met someone who actually cared about how young I am so spare me of the bullshit,” Summer told him coldly and Pedro didn’t really know what to make of those words. “I’m not a little girl. I don’t need to be taken care of or to be the cause of your concerns. It’s belittling to me that you feel like you’ve taken advantage of me as if I’m incapable of making my own decisions.”</p><p>“I didn’t mean it that way,” Pedro defended even though he was slowly becoming aware that his words of concern had actually made this worse. It was probably the wrong choice of words to use. “I just meant that you’re obviously very young and I’m not. I was more aware of the ramifications of what us spending the night together could mean but I went ahead and stayed with you despite of all that.”</p><p>“Thank you for your <em>concern </em>but I don’t need a daddy. I already have one,” Summer told him and she already wanted to be done with this conversation.</p><p>Summer knew he meant that he was more experienced than her and Summer knew that but he was making it sound like she was some stupid kid who wasn’t in her right mind. Summer knew she was younger than him but she was old enough to know what she was doing. It felt so patronizing for him to stand there and tell her she didn’t know what she was doing. Not texting or calling her was one thing but this was entirely more insulting than just plain rejection.</p><p>“I never meant to hurt you by not calling,” Pedro said softly, his gaze full of regret. He wished he could’ve used better words or maybe just called her to let her know they couldn’t see each other again. Actually, maybe he should’ve never went home with her in the first place. It probably would’ve saved them both a lot of hurt. “I should’ve called you. It was cowardly and immature to not call.”</p><p>“It’s fine,” Summer lied as she started to wonder if she really had reverted back to her teenage self these past couple weeks since her night with Pedro. Summer used to get entirely crazy about guys and always misread things, giving it her all while she got nothing in return. Maybe she read too much into things with Pedro. Now she just felt silly and ridiculous. Summer was starting to think maybe she was just better off being single. She wasn’t ready to get back out there. At least it was one thing she learned from this whole Pedro thing.</p><p>“I really am sorry-“ Pedro started to say and Summer just sighed. She supposed if she really reverted back to her teenaged ways then she might’ve cried or run off but Summer was too tired for that stuff. Tom cured her of all the tears and dramatics.</p><p>“It’s seriously fine,” Summer told him again. “Can we just forget this whole thing and present the award? I just want to get through this whole award season shit show and go home.”</p><p>She just wanted to forget about the whole thing and present the award like they were supposed to. Maybe she could just get drunk at the after-party like Zendaya suggested. It’s not like she needed a boyfriend. Summer hadn’t really been looking for one anyways. She enjoyed being single and maybe this was really for the best. Summer could just go back to having fun and being single.</p><p>“Of course,” Pedro said sincerely with a small, awkward smile on his face. “You know, I thought it was a really cruel twist of fate when my agent emailed me about you. Who would’ve thought?”</p><p>Summer had been ready to move on and forget him…up until that point.</p><p>Was he seriously joking around with her? Like, they were old friends or acquaintances? The same guy who went down on her and who seemed to enjoy all the “little” noises she made for him which were his own words and not hers.  Also, the same guy who spent all night and well into the morning with his cock inside her. Someone she also let cum inside her which was stupid. She would admit to that but he couldn’t have voiced any of these concerns before all that?</p><p>He waited until now?</p><p>After they already had sex and cuddled?</p><p>Cuddled?!</p><p>Somehow cuddling was even more intimate than sex to her and now he was telling her this bullshit story which was basically the same thing as ‘it’s not you, it’s me’.  And to top it all off , now he was just pretending like they were old friends.</p><p>Summer wasn’t his friend.</p><p>And why did she tell him it was fine? Like she was trying to console him or make him feel better about himself. She shouldn’t have to make him feel better.</p><p>Summer then came to realize she was pulling the same shit she did with Tom and every other guy. Where she felt like she had to make them feel better. Where she was the first to cave in and apologize when she had nothing to be sorry about. Well, Summer promised herself to leave all that Tom shit in 2019 so she wasn’t going to put up with it from anyone else ever again. She had more self worth than that.</p><p>“You know what?” Summer finally said as she turned to look at him. “It’s not fine. I’m actually pissed at you.”</p><p>Pedro’s smile faded and he looked at her in surprise. He thought that maybe it was like he originally thought. That she didn’t care too much about him not calling or not wanting to see each other again.</p><p>That she was fine with it.</p><p>After all, there were plenty of men out there that were her own age and not old like him. He’d be nothing more than a footnote in her list of lovers. A regret at best. However, the furious look on her face told him that maybe he misjudged her affection for him.</p><p>“What? I-“ Pedro told her but Summer didn’t let him finish. She felt like he talked enough tonight. Between apparently making decisions for her and treating her like a child. Summer felt like she hadn’t had a chance to tell him how she felt.</p><p>“I think you’ve talked enough tonight since you’ve apparently decided to take a turn at life-coaching for me,” Summer said sarcastically before continuing all while Pedro watched her in surprise. “Don’t pretend like we’re friends because we’re not. By the way, it’s awfully convenient for you to suddenly grow this conscience after the fact. You didn’t really seem intent on this high road thing when I invited you in. Not when you had your tongue in my pussy, not when you fucked me, not when I let you cum inside me, and not when you spooned me.”</p><p>Pedro blushed at her blunt words and Summer didn’t care if he felt embarrassed. He probably already felt embarrassed of her judging by the way he never called and then proceeded to pretend to not know her.  In fact, this whole responsibility thing is probably just an excuse for not calling.</p><p>“Yes, I was the one who initiated everything. I knew you were probably only interested in sex. I’m not naïve and maybe I did hope it wouldn’t just be sex but I wasn’t going to say anything,” Summer admitted to him. Pedro swallowed hard, a feeling of guilt and awfulness washing over him with every word spoken by her. “You were the one who suggested that we should see each other again. It was you. Not me. You told me you would call and completely led me on because you never called, texted, or anything. You didn’t even come by. I live two blocks away from Sarah’s house. It’s not like I lived in the hills or anything.”</p><p>“You keep saying how you’re older and you know better than I do,” Summer said, her anger fading. Instead she just felt hurt by not just his rejection but his dismissal of her feelings. That she shouldn’t feel sad that he never called because he was too old for her anyways. Summer didn’t like being told how to feel. “But an adult wouldn’t lead someone on like that by making false promises or just not even having the decency to call to say that you liked me but changed your mind about us seeing each other. If you’d just called and said all this then I would’ve understood.”</p><p>“Sarah just got in my head and said these things about you,” Pedro tried to excuse and Summer stared at her in bewilderment. “That maybe I gave you the wrong idea. That you always moved a little too fast with men in the past.”</p><p>“Excuse me?” Summer questioned and Pedro took a deep breath before nodding.</p><p>“She said that you fell in love with every guy you were seeing and I didn’t want to give you the wrong idea,” Pedro told her and Summer stared at him for a moment. Not she was really pissed.</p><p>“That’s none of your fucking business,” Summer told him because it really wasn’t. She couldn’t believe Sarah told him about all that stuff. It was years ago. “And even if it was, I was a teenager. I did stupid stuff. I dated a normal amount of guys, okay? If I was a guy then no one would think anything of it.”</p><p>“I didn’t mean to insinuate anything,” Pedro told her and Summer sighed tiredly, shaking her head at him.</p><p>“Don’t worry. I’m not in love with you,” Summer said sarcastically and Pedro realized that he probably really put his foot in his mouth this time. Now he felt like an idiot for even listening to Sarah in the first place. While she worked with Summer a lot, that didn’t mean they were close enough for her to really know Summer in that way. “That night together was fun but it wasn’t that fun.”</p><p>“And I also didn’t appreciate the way you pretended not to know me earlier and yes, I noticed that,” Summer told him. She wasn’t finished with him. For so long she withheld her anger when it came to men and Summer was finished doing that. Pedro didn’t know what to say anymore. He really fucked up and probably deserved her anger. “If you’re embarrassed of me then fine but going so far as to pretend like we never met? Well, I’m no one’s dirty secret.”</p><p>“I don’t know what game you’re playing but I’m not playing it. I’m tired of playing games with people,” Summer continued because frankly she was just pissed at him. Angry that he didn’t call or, at least, have the decency to tell her he didn’t want to see her. She was angry he pretended not to know her. She was angry at being treated like a child by him and she was also angry that he listened to and believed gossip about her. Summer also thought because he was older that he would be beyond playing silly games but apparently he wasn’t. “And by the way, you <em>are</em> one of those sleazy gross old actors.”</p><p>Pedro guilty look then turned to confusion so Summer took it upon herself to elaborate. He deserved her anger. Summer severely misjudged his character earlier because now he was acting like a total asshole.</p><p>“Because not only did you sleep with me but you never called and now you pretend not to know me like you’re ashamed of me or you’re ashamed of yourself for sleeping with me,” Summer said, honestly hurt by the fact he felt ashamed of her. It actually hurt more than his rejection of her did. “You’re actually worse than those sleazy old actors because, at least, they don’t hide the fact that they sleep with younger women and they don’t have any shame about it. They own up to it. You just pretend like you’re this moral and decent guy but you’re not. You’re the same.”</p><p>Pedro stood there and tried to process everything she said. He realized that he really had made an ass of himself to her. In trying to do the right thing or respectful thing, Pedro had done the exact opposite. He made her feel as though he were ashamed of her and he ignored her while listening to gossip that Sarah told him.</p><p>“Look, let’s just get through with presenting this award,” Summer told him, breaking Pedro out of his thoughts. “And just do me a favor and continue ignoring me at the after-party. I’m tired and the sight of you is giving me a headache.”</p><p>Pedro was at a loss of words so he just nodded. It was just occurring to him that she was completely right about him. He did everything the wrong way and he’d acted like an immature cowardly asshole. It was a lot worse than it seemed in his head when he decided to just not call her or when he acted like he didn’t know her. He really hurt her and Pedro never meant to do that to her. Pedro made the assumption that she would forget about him and move on to someone younger. In assuming those things about her, he did something that was unforgivable and worse than anything else he could’ve done.</p><p>He had regrets but he didn’t regret their night together even though he should’ve because of the age difference. An age difference that didn’t seem to matter as much now that she vocalized her feelings about his handling of the whole ordeal. It seemed so little and petty now.</p><p>The only thing Pedro regretted was the fact that he hurt her.</p>
<hr/><p>Presenting the award together had been putting Summer’s best acting skills to the test. Smiling at the audience and all the cameras as she linked arms with Pedro. She couldn’t help but be reminded of that night he walked her home from the party. Summer linked her arm through his and claimed it was for protection but it really wasn’t. She just liked him a lot and wanted to be closer to him.</p><p>They presented the award to Michelle Williams much to the surprise and delight of the audience who all cheered for her. Summer kept a front on as she congratulated the older actress. Not that she wasn’t happy for Michelle but she was still fuming from her encounter with Pedro.</p><p>Summer and Pedro followed the award winning actress backstage. They continued to congratulate her but as soon as Michelle was led off by one of the coordinators, Summer dropped the happy façade. She barely cast a look in Pedro’s direction as Sydney led her away but Pedro couldn’t stop staring after her.</p><p>The feeling that he severely messed up hung over his head as he watched her leave.</p><p>He made a huge fucking mistake, hadn’t he?</p>
<hr/><p>“I don’t understand,” Zendaya professed as she stared at her friend in confusion. Summer just shrugged as she took an extra long sip from her glass of champagne. They were at the after-party for the SAG awards after the ceremony ended. Zendaya’s boyfriend Jacob went to get a drink, leaving the two actresses alone. “What did he say?”</p><p>“That he didn’t call because he didn’t think it was a good idea. He’s old and I’m young basically,” Summer told Zendaya, giving her the short version of Pedro’s feelings. “It was so fucking insulting. He treated me like a child.”</p><p>“Well, maybe he has a point. Do you really think getting involved with someone that old is a good idea, Summer?” Zendaya told her and Summer didn’t really want to hear it. All Summer wanted to do was drink her champagne and forget all the Pedro drama…and definitely stay away from anymore guys. Men were the last thing she wanted to be on her mind. “How do you think the people would react?”</p><p>“We both know that I gave up on trying to make everyone happy when I left Disney,” Summer told her.</p><p>It was true.</p><p>Summer struggled for years during her time on Disney trying to be this perfect Disney princess and role model but eventually realized that not even she could live up to the standard of the character she played on Disney Channel. No one could because it was impossible to be the perfect princess that everyone wanted her to be. Summer just decided to live her life and not care what other people thought of her. Her purpose in life wasn’t to make everyone happy.</p><p>“Well, fine then. What about your parents?” Zendaya asked her and Summer scoffed.</p><p>“My parents don’t give a shit about what I do,” Summer said as she almost laughed at the thought of her parents actually trying to stop her from doing what she wanted to do.</p><p>They weren’t bad parents or anything. They just used up all their energy with Natalie and had very little left over for Summer who was probably the most stressful daughter on the planet. When she turned eighteen, they told her she was on her own. All they asked was if she could stay out of prison and not end up in a sex tape. Summer was their crazy, free-spirited daughter who couldn’t be tamed as much as they tried. They realized they had to eventually let her go and hope for the best as any good parent could.</p><p>“What about Natalie?” Zendaya questioned and the smirk on Summer’s face faded at the mention of her sister. Summer might not have been scared of her parents but she was absolutely scared of her sister. Natalie was definitely a force to be reckoned with.</p><p>“I see your point,” Summer said quietly, not wanting to even imagine Natalie finding out that she slept with Pedro. Her sister would’ve lost it. “Look, I don’t know what I imagined would happen when I saw him again but it wasn’t this. It was worse than him not calling or texting. He said all this bullshit and then to top it all off he pretended like he didn’t know me in front of some of the people backstage.”</p><p>“What?” Zendaya questioned in surprise. Her surprise quickly turned into anger at the thought of someone treating her best friend like that.</p><p>“I guess he’s embarrassed that he slept with me. He’s scared of becoming like all those other actors,” Summer explained to her friend. “If anything I just feel dirty and used. You were right. I think he was only interested in sex. How could I be so stupid?”</p><p>“Don’t say that,” Zendaya said softly, trying to comfort her friend. “You’re not stupid. You told me everything about that night you spent with him. He totally led you on.”</p><p>“I thought I’d grown up and I was done falling for shit like that,” Summer said, feeling silly for thinking that Pedro wanted anything to do with her. Zendaya shook her head.</p><p>“Don’t even give him the satisfaction of thinking about him, Summer,” Zendaya told her seriously and Summer supposed she was right. She shouldn’t fawn over Pedro if he didn’t even want to give her the time of day. Summer deserved better than that. “You deserve to have fun so lets have fun.”</p><p>“You’re right,” Summer finally said, knowing that she couldn’t just dwell on Pedro. He made it clear that he wasn’t interested in her or having anything to do with her. She should just move on and accept that.</p><p>It’s not like there was anything she could do about it.</p><p>Did she even want to do anything about it?</p>
<hr/><p>Pedro made his way through the after-party chatting with old friends and meeting people he’d grown up idolizing. Meeting Meryl Steep was probably the highlight of his evening. Pedro didn’t think he could ever top that.</p><p>Even with all the craziness of the after-party, which was packed with celebrities, Pedro couldn’t help but let eyes linger on Summer throughout the entire evening. It couldn’t really be helped. There was an overwhelming feeling of regret he felt at the way he treated Summer. He hadn’t realized how much of an asshole he’d been until she confronted him about it and now he couldn’t but feel as though he made a huge mistake.</p><p>Pedro watched her conversing with her own group of friends. Especially watching her interact with Timothee Chalamet. He briefly observed them as they talked and laughed with Summer’s hand resting on Chalamet’s arm. He wasn’t able to keep the feeling of jealousy away at the image of her being that way with someone her own age. Pedro felt old and ridiculous in comparison. He started to wonder why she even went home with him that night if there were plenty of men her own age who would be more than happy for her to even give them five minutes of her time.</p><p>“They’re just friends, you know,” Someone said from Pedro’s right side. He finally looked away from Summer and noticed Zendaya standing there next to him with a curious look on her face.</p><p>“I uh…” Pedro said awkwardly. He was taken by surprise at Zendaya’s sudden appearance. He obviously knew of the very famous young actress and was vaguely aware that she and Summer were friends. Pedro just hadn’t been expecting her to approach him.</p><p>“Zendaya,” She introduced and Pedro offered her a small smile.</p><p>“Pedro,” He told her but it seemed like she already knew that information. It didn’t seem like news to Zendaya.</p><p>“I know who you are,” Zendaya replied before explaining herself. “Summer told me everything.  She always tells me everything.”</p><p>“Then I assume you think I’m a complete and total asshole,” Pedro predicted and Zendaya shrugged. She wasn’t about to deny that.</p><p>“Can’t argue with that,” Zendaya told him as she cast him a suspicious look. “I actually told her she should have fun tonight and forget about you but I didn’t think I’d see you standing over here giving her longing looks the whole night. Basically pining over her.”</p><p>“I’m not pining,” Pedro said quietly and Zendaya scoffed.</p><p>“What’s wrong with you, dude?” Zendaya questioned, shaking her head at him. “You’re old and you’re pining over a girl. I’ve literally watched you send her longing looks all night. You send so many mixed signals. I know for a fact that you’ve ghosted her for weeks and then pretended to not know her because you’re ashamed of sleeping with her. Well, no one should ever be ashamed of Summer-“</p><p>“I wasn’t ashamed,” Pedro interrupted which stopped Zendaya in the middle of her rant. She was two seconds from cussing the older actor out for playing mind games with her friend.</p><p>“What?” She questioned and Pedro nodded.</p><p>“I wasn’t ashamed of her. That’s not why I didn’t call and not why I pretended not to know her,” Pedro said, feeling guilty over his treatment of the blonde actress. “I thought she’d be embarrassed of me. That’s why I pretended not to know her.”</p><p>“And not calling her?” Zendaya asked and Pedro sighed.</p><p>“The age difference has given me a lot of hesitation,” Pedro admitted and that part Zendaya knew.</p><p>She started thinking about what she was about to say.</p><p>Zendaya knew the right thing to do was to bid Pedro goodbye and go join Summer and Timothee, forgetting all about Pedro Pascal. The guy who her friend had been crazy about for weeks before a few short hours ago when the mere mention of his name made her angry.</p><p>Zendaya knew she shouldn’t meddle in her friend’s love life.</p><p>She promised never to meddle in Summer’s personal life ever again after the Tom ordeal. It was easier when she just thought Summer was another name on Pedro’s long list of scorned lovers but after observing him giving Summer puppy dog looks all night, Zendaya felt like maybe she misjudged him. Maybe he wasn’t the asshole she made him out to be in all her imagined versions of him. Besides…Summer really liked him and if the only thing standing in between them was the age difference then what did it matter?</p><p>Summer and Pedro were both adults.</p><p>Zendaya finally sighed.</p><p>“If there’s one thing to know about Summer, it’s that she doesn’t care what people think of her. It’s something I envy her for,” Zendaya finally told him and he looked at the tall actress in surprise. “Disney really messed with her head. More than so than me. Summer’s a free spirit. Someone like that can’t be controlled or tamed which is what Disney tried and failed to do. She stopped caring what people thought of her the moment she left Disney.”</p><p>“I can see that,” Pedro said softly, glancing momentarily back to Summer before returning his attention to Zendaya. Summer did seem a bit wild and the idea of anyone controlling her seemed laughable.</p><p>“What I’m saying is that Summer’s not going to care if you’re super old because you <em>are</em> old. I just want you to know that I think you’re really old,” Zendaya added, causing Pedro to chuckle. She was funny but more of an obvious funny. Not funny like Summer who was quick-witted and full of sass. “She really likes you and probably still does even though you’ve acted like a complete asshole about this entire thing. You should talk to her.”</p><p>“I don’t know,” Pedro said doubtfully and Zendaya rolled her eyes. She noticed he was still glancing between Summer and Timothee.</p><p>“Are you still jealous about Timmy?” Zendaya questioned and shook her head. “Summer doesn’t like him like that. She thinks he’s a dork. A dork who’s her friend but a dork nonetheless. Besides…it’s not Timothee that’s had Summer constantly checking her phone for the past couple weeks.”</p><p>Pedro swallowed hard at that. He knew that Sarah had a logical point about it not being a good idea if he and Summer saw each other again. People would talk and it might end badly for the both of them but did Pedro really care what people thought? He’d never been the type to care and if Summer didn’t care either then what did it matter? Yes, she was so much younger than himself and he always rolled his eyes at those revolting actors who married women young enough to be their daughters.</p><p>Pedro always questioned why those men couldn’t find a woman closer to their own age. He certainly had no trouble. Pedro had never dipped his toe in the younger woman pond before Summer. He had opportunities every now and then but he politely brushed them off. They always seemed so immature and impossibly young. It wasn’t exactly a turn on for Pedro. In fact, Pedro didn’t see what those men could possibly have in common with those young women.</p><p>They often hadn’t started their own careers yet. They had seen very little of world and had minimal dating experience. Women in their twenties typically liked going out all the time. Whether it was to parties, clubs, or anything that wasn’t just staying at home.</p><p>Pedro still liked going out too but just not all the time.</p><p>He mostly just liked staying home, having dinner, and exploring his Netflix queue. If he did go out, it was usually by himself to the movie theater. Whether it was a screening of an old classic or a new film, Pedro loved going to the movies. When he wasn’t working, he’d go almost every weekend. Pedro just couldn’t see a woman in her twenties wanting to go to the movies every single weekend and then returning home for a quiet evening.</p><p>Pedro wasn’t naïve.</p><p>He knew those old actors really just had one thing on their minds. Sex with some pretty young thing. They didn’t care much for conversation or common interests. They liked having arm candy and showing off their young wives. Something that was enough to make Pedro roll his eyes and mock them.</p><p>Now it was like the pot calling the kettle black.</p><p>Pedro was a bit of a hypocrite in other words.</p><p>There was only one question he had to ask himself.</p><p>Was he attracted to Summer based solely on the fact that she was a younger woman?</p><p>Pedro thought long and hard about it. He could acknowledge the fact that she was a beautiful young woman. Pedro wasn’t blind. Summer was absolutely gorgeous but Pedro was never shallow. There had to be something to base a connection off of that was more than just someone who was gorgeous.</p><p>They talked that entire evening about Argento and Fulci. Not just small talk but a long discussion and dissection of Italian horror. Pedro was dying to know her opinion about American horror directors like Tobe Hooper and George Romero. Summer was also a Doors fan and so much that she even bought the house Jim Morrison and his girlfriend used to live in. These were common interests and some Pedro couldn’t find even with women his own age. Sure, he didn’t know her that well but they’d only spent one night together. Pedro hadn’t had a chance to explore what other common interests they might’ve shared.</p><p>As for inexperience…well, Pedro knew that Summer had traveled the world quite a bit as she told him so the night they first met. He knew from Sarah that Summer had dated around a lot so she wasn’t inexperienced there either. Summer even mentioned having a very serious relationship with the British golfer boyfriend she’d broken it off with some time ago.</p><p>Summer had a career already. Probably more established than his own career that he’d spent decades building. He was fully aware that she was a great deal more successful than him but Pedro wasn’t bothered by that. He was a fan of her work and he knew she was more than deserving of everything life had afforded her. She was a very talented actor and Pedro always had a lot of respect for her.</p><p>Summer and Pedro were equals in many ways despite the age gap. All the things that usually gave him pause about younger women didn’t apply to Summer. They both worked in a unique world where they could both be equals to each other despite being two decades apart.</p><p>So was Pedro attracted to Summer because she was younger than him?</p><p>No.</p><p>Not at all.</p><p>He found that he was attracted to her in spite of the age difference. There were many factors that drew him to Summer and not one was because she was younger than him. It wasn’t a mid-life crisis. It was just him being interested in a woman who was intelligent, funny, charming, and liked the same things he did.</p><p>“You should go talk to her,” Zendaya insisted, breaking Pedro out of his thoughts. “She thinks you pretended not to know her because you were ashamed of her. She was really hurt by that.”</p><p>“I don’t know if she wants to talk to me,” Pedro said quietly. His gaze softened as his eyes fell upon Summer once more. Zendaya rolled her eyes again.</p><p>“She does,” Zendaya assured him. “You’re not the only one who’s been casting longing looks at the other person all night.”</p><p>With that, Zendaya walked away and left Pedro alone with his own thoughts. He watched her leave for a moment as he processed her words. Pedro knew she was right. If the age difference didn’t matter to Summer then why should it matter to him? He already established that he wasn’t interested in her because she was younger.</p><p>Pedro was still a bit mixed up about all this but he knew nothing would be resolved unless he talked to Summer. He just hoped that Summer would want to talk to him. He wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t want to speak to him after all the shit he pulled.</p><p>Pedro dug himself into a gigantic hole but now it was time to dig himself out.</p>
<hr/><p>“When are you coming back to New York?” Chris asked his sister-in-law as they took a break from all the social interactions with their fellow actors. Timothee Chalamet and Florence Pugh were chatting on the other side of the room while Zendaya and her boyfriend left for the dance floor. It wasn’t technically an official dance floor. This was more of the social sort of party rather than the dancing kind but people got bored and danced to whatever chart topper was playing in the background.</p><p>Right now it was a Dua Lipa chart topper.</p><p>Something fast-paced with catchy lyrics.</p><p>“It’s barely been a month since I’ve moved back to LA,” Summer told him, rolling her eyes at him. “Let me settle in a little bit before I go back to New York for a visit.”</p><p>“But you’re all alone out here,” Chris pointed out and Summer shrugged.</p><p>“I’m not alone. All my friends live here,” Summer pointed out and it was a fair point. She liked the fact that a lot of her friends lived in the city. Whenever Zendaya wasn’t busy doing something, Summer would get to hang out with her. She was just a short distance away.</p><p>It was true that a lot of Summer’s friends still lived back in New Mexico. Even Katy who recently got married to her college sweetheart last summer. Summer attended the wedding as a bridesmaid.</p><p>Yes, it was slightly disappointing that Katy had decided to stay in New Mexico instead of moving out to LA like they always planned but she was finding out that you rarely kept the same plans you did when you were a kid. Summer always thought she’d be married with a baby by now but that hadn’t really panned out. Not that Summer thought she was old by any means but nothing really turned out the way you thought it would when you were a child with big dreams.</p><p>Still…Summer was happy for Katy and her husband was an incredible guy. Summer had gotten to know him really well over the past few years. She just wished that she could see Katy a little more than she did but things changed when you became an adult. Katy was just starting her career after graduating college and had settled into married life with her new husband.</p><p>It seemed mind-boggling to Summer who felt like she was starting over in a weird way. Between ending it with Tom, moving back to the states, and taking a break from acting, Summer felt like she was starting a new life. It was good, don’t get her wrong, but Summer felt so far behind all her other old friends back in New Mexico who were all graduating college, getting married, and some even having babies.</p><p>What was Summer doing with her life?</p><p>Sitting around her house all day and watching tv while trying out new hobbies or skimming over the scripts her agent was still sending her. It didn’t feel very adult. Summer was getting so restless from her break from acting that she was considering going back to work early. She was kept occupied with traveling but now that was over, Summer was just stuck with herself in LA. She spent her time watching true crime docuseries and doing way too much online shopping.</p><p>Katy always jokingly claimed to be jealous of Summer who was single again. Everyone said your twenties was supposed to be your best years, after all, and Katy had gotten married towards the beginning of them. Summer was supposed to be going out all the time and having fun but she exhausted herself of all the parties, music festivals, and clubbing between her teenage years and being with Tom who loved parties and clubs. They went all the time when they were together and Summer just got bored of it.</p><p>It was all the same and just plain repetitive.</p><p>Eventually Summer grew tired of waking up in the morning with a hangover and then puking up all the alcohol she drank with Tom at the pubs he frequented. She always felt like shit. Not to mention when you were drunk, you rarely remembered to take off your makeup the night before which led to breakouts. Breakouts which were the bane of Summer’s existence.</p><p>Summer didn’t mind a party but she preferred something more intimate. Something with friends and something low-key. Parties that she could enjoy and actually remember the next day instead of ones that were blurry or made her cringe at because she made a fool of herself.</p><p>“Yes, well, your sister and the kids live in New York,” Chris reminded her, breaking Summer out of her worries. It seemed like she was having a panic about her life and how off course it had become in the past year alone. She was still determining whether or not it was a good thing. “I know Natalie and you always bicker but she really misses you when you’re gone. The kids miss you too. They miss their Aunt Summer.”</p><p>“I miss you guys too. I really do but I know if I stay with you guys in New York, I’m just going to play nanny all day which I don’t mind. I love Alex and Olivia but I need to have my own life too. My own happiness too,” Summer explained to Chris. “I’ll see you guys soon. I have to go to New York for a couple days for the Emma press tour. I’ll stay with you guys then.”</p><p>“Then it’s back to LA?” Chris asked her and Summer sighed before nodding. She gave him a sad smile.</p><p>“I’m afraid so. At least, for now,” Summer told him honestly. “I’ve been slowly adjusting to being on my own again. It’s actually a lot less scary than I thought it was going to be.”</p><p>“I’m glad you’re doing good on your own but we still miss you,” Chris reminded her yet again and Summer understood that. She liked spending time with her family too but Summer also needed a bit more time to be on her own. This whole moving back to LA thing was pretty new and Summer didn’t want to give up on it just yet.</p><p>“I know and I miss everyone too but I’m back in the states now so you’ll still see a lot more of me than before,” Summer promised him and Chris decided to let it go. She wasn’t going to move out to New York. Summer spent a good chunk of her childhood in LA and she was comfortable there. New York was a whole other world to her and she just wasn’t ready. “I promise not to miss anymore holidays, okay? I’m back for good.”</p><p>“Unless you meet another British guy?” Chris joked and Summer playfully rolled her eyes.</p><p>“Yeah, no thanks,” Summer denied, knowing that she kind of deserved that burn. Most of her ex-boyfriends had been British, after all. Summer had a weird thing for the English accent. It probably stemmed from her celebrity crush on Colin Firth when she was a kid.</p><p>Fucking Colin Firth.</p><p>He ruined her whole life with his cute English accent and British charm. He set an unbelievably high standard that no man could possibly ever live up to. What did a girl have to do to find their own Colin Firth? Summer had no idea.</p><p>“I don’t believe you,” Chris told her jokingly as he smirked at her. “You love those guys. You can resist the temptation of another pasty faced Brit. Bad teeth and all.”</p><p>“Not anymore,” Summer told him and she was being serious. “By the way…that’s just a stereotype. Not all Brits have bad teeth. Some have very nice teeth.”</p><p>“Awfully defensive for someone who’s sworn off British guys,” Chris teased her and Summer was starting to regret coming to this thing as his date. He could be really annoying when he wanted to be.</p><p>“I just mean that I’m never going to fall for another person who I have to leave my family and friends behind just to be with,” Summer said on a more serious note. Chris’s smirk faded and he sobered up a bit. The older actor nodded. “I’m looking for compromises. Not just one-sided sacrifices.”</p><p>“Well, I’m not going to complain about that,” Chris said, a bit of pride in his eyes for the girl he watched grow up in this industry. He literally watched her go from Disney Channel teen idol to a critically acclaimed young actress. There was no reason not to be proud of her. Not with all the shit she had to put up with both inside and outside this industry.</p><p>“I’m fine, Chris. I lived on my own before. It’s not a new concept to me,” Summer assured her brother-in-law. “You don’t have to worry about me. I’m not a kid anymore.”</p><p>“You’ll always be a kid to me,” Chris responded and Summer was about to make a retort with some smart ass comeback when their private conversation was put to rest by someone approaching them. Summer almost choked on her drink when she saw who it was.</p><p>Pedro.</p><p>Why was he coming over here?</p><p>Summer had no idea. She thought he’d never want to speak to her again after the way she blew up at him earlier. Not that she felt guilty. Summer was beyond pissed off at him but she certainly hadn’t expected him to approach her at the after-party when she was with Chris.</p><p>“Hi, I just couldn’t leave the party without saying what a huge fan of yours I am,” Pedro told Chris who smiled welcomingly at him. “Pedro.”</p><p>“Chris, hi,” Chris introduced, shaking Pedro’s hand as Summer tried not to think about how weird this was. Her brother-in-law being all friendly with a guy she had a one night stand with. Not that Chris knew that but it was still weird. “I’m a big fan too. Narcos is incredible and my wife and I can’t get enough of Game of Thrones. We’ve been fans of that show forever and what an impact you made there with such a short character arc. Incredible.”</p><p>“Thanks. That really means a lot,” Pedro said humbly at Chris’s praise although he couldn’t help but steal glances at Summer who seemed to particularly interested in the floor because she hadn’t taken her gaze away from it. “I saw your performance in Lobby Hero on Broadway. It was amazing.”</p><p>“You were there?” Chris asked, giving the actor a friendly smile. “You should’ve come backstage. Everyone already knows you and they always talk about you. I felt like I was missing out.”</p><p>“Nah…I figured everyone was tired. I know how those things go,” Pedro said and Chris nodded in agreement.</p><p>Pedro was something of a theater actor and he was well-known to Chris. The actor starred in numerous Broadway and off-Broadway productions and was a veteran of the stage. Chris had only starred in one Broadway production and he was thirty-eight. Pedro was practically legendary on Broadway in comparison.</p><p>“Chris over here!” Paul Rudd called out from a short distance, grabbing everyone’s attention. The older actor seemed to be trying to get Chris’s attention and Summer didn’t know whether to curse him or thank him. Curse him for taking Chris away and leaving her alone with Pedro. Thank him for stopping the awkwardness of Chris and Summer’s one night stand bonding over theater.</p><p>Summer was torn to say the least.</p><p>“Rudd…it’s probably about the fantasy football league,” Chris explained vaguely to Summer and Pedro.</p><p>“Yes, because fantasy football is such an urgent matter,” Summer said sarcastically before rolling her eyes at him. “Go trash talk him if you want to. I’ll be fine.”</p><p>“Are you sure?” He asked her and Summer nodded. Chris glanced at Pedro, giving him an apologetic look.</p><p>“Sorry. I have to go talk to that idiot over there who thinks he has the best team in the league,” Chris explained to Pedro who nodded in understanding. “It was so nice meeting you.”</p><p>“You too,” Pedro told him and Chris smiled at him.</p><p>“Just do me a favor and keep an eye on this one,” Chris told him jokingly as he pointedly looked at his sister-in-law but Summer wasn’t amused. “She likes to get in trouble.”</p><p>“I can take care of myself, Evans,” Summer retorted but Chris just snickered at her before walking away, leaving both she and Pedro alone again. Why did people keep leaving her and Pedro alone together?</p><p>It was the very thing she wanted a couple weeks ago and now it was the last thing she wanted. Not after their disagreement earlier. Summer just wanted to go home and forget about him. She didn’t want to be stuck next to him at a party.</p><p>“A big Chris Evans fan, huh?” Summer said sarcastically and Pedro realized he deserved that. He hadn’t expected her to be nice to him. Not after how he treated her. “You don’t have to babysit me. I know you like treating me like I’m a child but I’m not one.”</p><p>Pedro gave her a long look. She was definitely still pissed at him. There was no mistaking that. Her anger hadn’t faded from earlier and he didn’t expect it to fade any time soon either.</p><p>“I didn’t come over here to talk to Chris Evans,” Pedro confessed to Summer who finally met his gaze. She gave him a suspicious look, not entirely trusting his intentions.</p><p>Now could she?</p><p>Not after all his mixed signals.</p><p>“Then why did you come over here?” Summer questioned and he gave her a serious look.</p><p>“Can we talk?” Pedro asked her softly and Summer stared at him. “Privately?”</p><p>“If it’s to patronize me again-“ She started to say but Pedro interrupted her.</p><p>“It’s not. I promise,” He insisted.</p><p>Summer stared at him long and hard.</p><p>There were probably a million reasons why she should tell him to fuck off and leave but somehow Summer couldn’t find it in herself to do that. She probably should’ve just walked away but for some reason, Summer still felt drawn to him. Even after the way he treated her. Something told her that she needed to hear him out.</p><p>So she did.</p><p>Summer nodded and a look of relief came over Pedro’s face. He quietly led her to a vacated table where they could speak in private.</p><p>Pedro could only hope she didn’t despise him at this point.</p>
<hr/><p>“I want to apologize again,” Pedro told her sincerely, looking directly at her from across the table. Summer almost felt ready to leave again.</p><p>“Not this again,” Summer told him as she prepared herself to leave. “I’ve heard enough of your apologies tonight, Pedro.”</p><p>“No, a real apology,” Pedro insisted, trying to hurry up and spit it out before she decided to leave for good. “You’re right. I was treating you like a child earlier and you’re not a child. I never meant to patronize you or belittle you. I have a lot of respect for you and I know you’re an adult.”</p><p>“Well, you patronized and belittled me anyways,” Summer said quietly, not knowing what else to say to that. He was saying things she already knew.</p><p>“I thought I was doing the right thing by not calling or texting you but I wasn’t. It was immature and cowardly not to give you an explanation for my behavior,” Pedro confessed and Summer watched him with both caution and curiosity. “I also let Sarah get into my head and she had no right to discuss your personal life with me. You were right. It wasn’t any of my business to judge you based on that.”</p><p>“I’m not mad at Sarah or anything,” Summer said in a small voice. She was taken by surprise at his apology. That’s not what she expected him to apologize for. “I know she was just trying to protect you. I get it. You two are really close. I have friends that would do the same for me.”</p><p>“I still shouldn’t have listened to her or those stories,” Pedro confessed as he was hellbent on getting Summer to forgive him for everything or for her to, at least, give him a second chance. “I didn’t pretend not to know you earlier because I was ashamed of you.”</p><p>“What?” Summer asked in confusion. Pedro nodded.</p><p>“You were wrong when you said I thought of you as a dirty secret,” Pedro said with such sincerity in his brown eyes that Summer had no reason but to believe him. “I never thought of you that way. I was never ashamed. Maybe worried or hesitant but not ashamed.”</p><p>“Then why did you do it?” Summer asked him and Pedro swallowed hard.</p><p>“I thought you were the one ashamed of me,” Pedro told her and Summer just stared at him in silence. “You’re young and I’m an old man who still doesn’t know why you’d ever want anything to do with me.”</p><p>“I was never ashamed of you,” Summer said softly, never knowing he thought that about her. He kept reminding her of his age but Summer didn’t mind how old he was. She never did. “And can you quit it with the age difference thing? You keep bringing it up.”</p><p>“I bring it up because it’s important,” Pedro reminded her. He wanted her to realize that the age gap was a huge deal. “You seem to not care that much but it’s not something you can ignore. It’s definitely something worth thinking about. We’re over two decades apart.”</p><p>“Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas are twenty-five years apart,” Summer informed him much to Pedro’s amusement. “Annette Bening and Warren Beatty are twenty-one years apart. Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart were twenty-five years apart. All perfectly happy people.”</p><p>“So you <em>have</em> given this some thought?” Pedro asked her, a small smile forming. Summer laughed before shrugging.</p><p>“Of course I’ve thought about it. It’s kind of hard not to think about,” Summer admitted and Pedro was relieved to hear that. “You were probably already in college when I was born. That’s a bit weird.”</p><p>“Yeah, I can agree with that,” Pedro told her and that notion didn’t escape him. He had also given it a lot of thought. “But I was referring to other things that the age difference might bring up.”</p><p>“What things?” Summer asked him and Pedro sighed heavily. He knew it was a heavy topic to already bring it up with someone he wasn’t even in an actual relationship with. However, these things needed to be addressed if he was going to continue to see Summer. The age gap forced his hand.</p><p>“Like I said before, I’m old and you’re young. I’m at an age where I have to start thinking about settling down,” Pedro said slowly. It was an awkward conversation to have with someone he’d only spent a night with. Yes, he liked Summer a lot and wanted to see her again but it was still awkward to bring up. “I mean, I’m forty-four, Summer. I need to start looking for something serious.”</p><p>“You don’t think I’m serious?” Summer asked him and Pedro sighed.</p><p>“That’s not what I meant,” Pedro told her as he tried to explain himself better. “I’m sure you’re looking for something serious too but you’re young. I’m talking about marriage and kids. Something that I didn’t even give one thought towards when I was your age.”</p><p>“Oh…” Summer trailed off awkwardly once she realized what Pedro meant about their age difference.</p><p>“I normally wouldn’t bring something like this up so soon but I really like you and I don’t want to see you again if it means there can’t be a future,” Pedro told her honestly. “It would be too painful. I just wanted to let you know that I’m not getting any younger and I’m looking for someone to settle down with. Someone who wants the same things I do. I just don’t see you wanting the same-“</p><p>“What if I did?” Summer finally spoke up and Pedro looked at her in surprise. She swallowed hard before speaking. “What if I was looking for those same things with someone?”</p><p>“What?” He said in surprise and she nodded.</p><p>“I never wanted to wait until I was older for those things,” Summer explained, feeling a bit nervous under his intense gaze. “My parents had me when they were older and I never wanted to wait that long for kids or marriage. Maybe if I was still trying to build a career or life for myself but I’m not. I’m doing pretty okay career wise, I think.”</p><p>“You’re twenty-three,” Pedro pointed out and Summer nodded.</p><p>“I know it’s pretty unheard of in this industry but I always wanted to be a mom. Not because I feel like it would complete me. It’s not that. I just want kids,” Summer told him honestly and it was probably the most honest conversation she had with a guy on what would’ve been a second or third date for them. “And then watching my sister become a mom and just her with Chris and their kids. I realized I wanted the same thing. It got so much worse after my niece was born. I never seem to want to give her back.”</p><p>Pedro couldn’t believe it.</p><p>Everything that was holding him back from pursuing anything with Summer suddenly became non-existent. She wasn’t ignoring their age difference but acknowledging that it was weird while at the same time not wanting to let it get in the way of whatever they had. Summer also seemed to be looking for the same things he was looking for.</p><p>“I actually wanted those things with my ex but he wasn’t ready. He got cold feet,” Summer admitted to Pedro who listened to her intently. “It’s part of the reason we broke up. I don’t think he knew what he wanted but I did.”</p><p>“I’m sorry,” Pedro said although he couldn’t imagine how that felt. After all, Pedro had always been the one who wasn’t ready for kids or marriage in a relationship when he was younger. He’d never been in Summer’s shoes. Summer just smiled and shook her head.</p><p>“It’s fine,” Summer told him sincerely. “It was a while ago now.”</p><p>She paused for a moment before mentioning something else that she wanted to make sure Pedro knew. Summer liked the fact that he was looking for something serious too. It was good to know before anything got more serious between them. It was nice that it all out on the table. Summer never had that with anyone before.</p><p>No games.  </p><p>“It’s really premature to talk about marriage and kids and we just met a couple weeks ago. I’m not going to have your babies now or anything. I have an IUD for a reason,” Summer told him with a teasing tone but she was also being serious. “I kind of like to get to know a guy more before I decide to have his babies.”</p><p>“That’s fair enough,” Pedro said, chuckling at her. “I just want to know that it’s an option somewhere along the line if I don’t fuck anything else up or if we don’t decide to call this off for good.”</p><p>“It’s definitely an option,” Summer promised him although she felt a wave of excitement wash over her. She originally thought she’d have to spend six months or even a year seeing a guy before he let her know whether or not he ever wanted kids. Pedro told her he wanted kids right off the bat. He made everything that seemed so complicated to her and stressful, seem easy and simple. Maybe it really was that easy and simple. Maybe it wasn’t as complicated as she used to think. “So we’ve established that we’re both open to marriage and kids?”</p><p>“I think we have,” Pedro said, nodding his head. Summer laughed.</p><p>“Great then can just put this conversation in a vault for a while?” Summer asked him. It wasn’t that she wanted to forget the conversation but it was a weird conversation to have so early into a relationship.</p><p>If this even was a relationship?</p><p>Summer was too afraid to ask and they technically hadn’t been on any official dates quite yet. It was good they both knew what the other was looking for and what they both were looking for were the same things. However, Summer was interested in getting to know him better first.</p><p>“You haven’t even taken me to dinner yet.”</p><p>“I think it’s better if we put this conversation on hold too,” Pedro said in agreement before giving her a hopeful look. “Does this mean I’m forgiven?”</p><p>Summer rolled her eyes playfully.</p><p>“It means that you owe me a text and a date,” Summer told him and he grinned at her. “But yes, we’re good.”</p><p>“Because I made a real ass of myself and I’d understand if you told me to fuck off,” Pedro added and Summer shook her head.</p><p>“Well, I definitely thought about it but I also understand why you did it,” Summer told him honestly. “As long as you don’t do it again.”</p><p>“I won’t,” Pedro promised her and this time he intended to keep his promise. Summer believed him. She knew he gave her every reason not to believe him but somehow she did. She briefly hesitated before asking him something else.</p><p>“Whatever this is, can we just keep it between the two of us for now?” Summer asked him softly, eyes locking onto his. “I meant it earlier when I said that I wasn’t ashamed of you. I’m in the public eye a lot and I don’t have the luxury of a lot of privacy. I don’t want to invite the world into this. I’d like it to be just ours for now. If they see us together then we’ll have no privacy at all. You won’t have privacy anymore either.”</p><p>Pedro placed his hand over hers, giving her a look of understanding.</p><p>She wasn’t just telling him that she was a private person but she was also warning him that cameras followed her wherever she went. Pedro was used to living pretty much under the radar. He could go where he wanted without cameras following him. Paps barely paid attention to him but they would if they saw him with Summer.</p><p>Pedro still had an out. No one knew about them now but if they found out then he could say goodbye to any privacy. Privacy sort of went out the window wherever Summer was involved. There was rarely anywhere she could go or anything she could do without people knowing about it.</p><p>It was the price of fame.</p><p>“I think that’s a good idea,” Pedro told her but he didn’t give her any sign of having any second thoughts. “I wouldn’t mind that. It’s probably better that way, actually. I think I know some ways we can get around it. It might take some sneaking around.”</p><p>“Sneaking around sounds kind of hot,” Summer told him and Pedro laughed before nodding in agreement.</p><p>“It is hot,” Pedro told her. He then took a glance at a few couples who were dancing on the make-shift dance floor. Mostly married couples. Summer spotted Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas.</p><p>“Do you want to dance? I can manage slow songs. Anything with a faster tempo and I would for sure embarrass you. Forgetting the fact that I’m old.”</p><p>“You really want to?” Summer asked him with a raised eyebrow. “Dancing’s kind of a dangerous game, isn’t it? I thought we were going to try to establish something more private. I’m not sure dancing in front of everyone is a way to do that.”</p><p>“No one’s going to know that we had sex if we have one little dance, McGrath,” Pedro informed her, looking highly amused by the blonde. His tone was flirtatious and his eyes glinted with mischief. “I mean, I could just stick my tongue down your throat to let them know but I don’t think you’d like that.”</p><p>“I’d like it more if my brother-in-law wasn’t standing over there,” Summer flirted back, nodding her head in Chris’s direction who was completely oblivious to whatever was going on between Summer and Pedro. He was laughing at something Paul Rudd was telling him. “I’m not sure he’d appreciate that.”</p><p>“He’s the overprotective type then?” Pedro inquired and Summer smiled but shook her head.</p><p>“I have no idea but I don’t really want to find out tonight,” Summer retorted, causing Pedro to laugh. She missed this. The banter they shared that night together. It was nice to have it back.</p><p>“It’s a yes to the dance by the way.”</p><p>“Don’t worry. I’ll keep my hands in appropriate places,” Pedro promised as he stood up from the table they were sitting at and offered her his hand. Summer smiled happily at him as she took his hand, allowing him to lead her to where all the other couples were. “It won’t be easy. That dress doesn’t leave much to the imagination, does it? I’ve been struggling to keep my eyes on your face this whole night.”</p><p>“Pedro!” Summer scolded but giggled nonetheless. He purposefully glanced down at her breasts in the strapless gown with a neckline that made them hard not to notice. Summer playfully smacked him on the shoulder as they settled in with the other dancing couples.</p><p>“Lover” played in the background.</p><p>“Good God. A Taylor Swift song,” Pedro complained and Summer gave him a look.</p><p>“What’s wrong with Taylor Swift?” Summer questioned, pretending to take offense. She met Taylor Swift on several occasions in the past. Summer had even appeared in the “Bad Blood” music video but they weren’t close. “She’s an amazing songwriter. This song is going to be played at every wedding this year.”</p><p>“Oh, I forgot. You’re part of her squad, aren’t you?” Pedro teased and Summer rolled her eyes. She really wasn’t a part of the squad. She never was. “You and all those models.”</p><p>“I’m not part of any squad,” Summer told him and she wasn’t. Summer didn’t have a girl squad. Just a collection of friends from here and there. Summer wasn’t sure if that counted as a squad.</p><p>“I will say this…it’s a pretty good song,” Pedro admitted, allowing himself to get into it. “Have I known you twenty seconds or twenty years? Can I go where you go? It’s nice…beautiful.”</p><p>“You don’t have to recite Taylor Swift lyrics to make me want to go home with you,” Summer told him as they swayed side to side, her hands resting on his shoulders and his hands on her hips. “I was going to go home with you anyways.”</p><p>“Are you sure?” Pedro asked. He was a bit surprised by this. “After last time I thought you’d want to wait or hold off on that.”</p><p>“Why? Are you going to run away and ghost me again?” Summer retorted and Pedro chuckled. She just smiled at him. After their conversation and all the things they sorted out, Summer didn’t think he’d run out again. They came to an understanding and there was no reason for him to run away again.</p><p>“Not at all,” Pedro promised her as they continued dancing in the midst of all the other couples. No one seemed to be paying any attention to them or giving them odd looks. Sophie Turner even smiled and waved at Pedro from over her husband’s shoulder. Nothing was amiss. “See? No one’s even looking at us.”</p><p>“I guess not,” Summer said. She was still a bit worried about the privacy thing already going out the window but he was right. No one hardly looked in their direction. They were too preoccupied with their own conversations.</p><p>“Just a father and daughter sharing a nice dance. There’s nothing weird about that,” Pedro joked and Summer gave him a look of disbelief but she couldn’t help but laugh at his bad joke. She didn’t know they were already joking about the age gap. “What? Too soon?”</p><p>“No, you just have a really awful sense of humor,” Summer shot back but it wasn’t true. He was actually hilarious and Summer liked that about him. If he was joking about this then it meant that he wasn’t completely freaking out over the age gap. Not that it was a forgotten issue but just something they were both willing to look past.</p><p>Summer could accept that.</p><p>“You find me a little funny, at least. Just admit it,” Pedro told her knowingly. Summer playfully rolled her eyes.</p><p>“I guess you’re pretty funny…for a boomer,” Summer retorted and Pedro grinned. He missed that sass. It was something that felt missing from his life for the past couple weeks. “I didn’t know someone could have dad jokes without actually being a dad.”</p><p>“Boomer?” Pedro questioned, amused by her teasing. “I’ll have you know that I’m a junior Gen X. Nowhere near a boomer and my dad jokes have always been greatly appreciated.”</p><p>“I’m sure they have,” Summer said, not quite believing him even though she liked his jokes. He made her laugh so much that night they spent together and Summer was just glad that night wasn’t the end. That he was making her laugh here and now.</p><p>“I really meant it earlier when I said how beautiful you look,” Pedro whispered to her so no one would overhear him. She managed to blush as she held on to him. “I haven’t looked away the entire evening.”</p><p>“I know,” Summer said quietly. She hadn’t been stupid. Summer had noticed his eyes on her all night. Even if she’d been angry at him, she was still flattered by his attention. “I like your glasses.”</p><p>“My glasses?” Pedro asked in amusement and Summer nodded. “You have a thing for glasses? What? Like a professor thing?”</p><p>“Pretty weird for someone who never went to college,” Summer quipped before glancing at his nose. “I like your nose too.”</p><p>“No, you don’t,” Pedro said, laughing at her compliment but Summer was serious. “My nose? I don’t believe you.”</p><p>“It’s true. The first thing I notice about a man is his nose,” Summer teased while continuing to flirt with him. “They say a man’s nose is the biggest indicator of penis size.”</p><p>“Where did you hear that? Cosmo?” Pedro asked sarcastically but gave a nervous chuckle.</p><p>“I don’t know but I guess they were right,” Summer retorted and Pedro rolled his eyes.</p><p>“You’re cute, McGrath,” He told Summer as they continued to dance.</p><p>It was getting late and the party was dwindling. Summer didn’t know where Zendaya or her boyfriend was. Chris was still socializing with old friends but suddenly Summer wasn’t in the partying mood. In fact, she’d rather be anywhere else than a party right now.</p><p>“Do you want to leave?” Summer asked him quietly and Pedro pulled away to look at her.</p><p>“Do <em>you</em> want to leave?” Pedro asked her in return and she nodded.</p><p>“I think it’s getting late,” Summer told him and Pedro was unsure of whether or not she meant that she wanted him to go home with her. She made a remark about it just a few short minutes ago but he wasn’t sure if she was being serious or not. Pedro hoped that she meant it but he also understood if she wanted to hold off on them having sex again. After the way he acted for the past couple weeks, it was completely understandable.</p><p>“You feeling tired?” Pedro stated and Summer just smiled at him before shaking her head.</p><p>“Not tired. I just want to go home,” Summer said, her eyes shyly meeting his gaze. For some reason, she feared he’d turn her down this time. She didn’t think she could ever handle any rejection from him again. Not after everything that happened between them. “I was hoping you’d come home with me.”</p><p>“To see that you get home safely?” Pedro asked politely, not wanting to step over any boundaries. “Or…”</p><p>“Or you could spend the night again?” Summer asked, finishing whatever he was about to say. Pedro swallowed hard.</p><p>“Are you sure you want that right now? You don’t want to wait?” Pedro inquired, wanting to make sure this was what Summer wanted. He was more than willing to come home with her but he also wanted her to trust him at the same time.</p><p>“I’m sure,” Summer assured him and she knew she was completely hooked on him. She should’ve made him wait until they, at least, went out on a date but Summer didn’t want to wait.</p><p>Her sister would’ve called her crazy but Summer didn’t feel crazy.</p><p>Even though they spent just one amazing night together, Summer missed him. It was weird to miss someone you barely knew but it was possible. Summer had looked forward to seeing him again since the moment he left her house that afternoon and so, of course, she wanted him to come home with her.</p><p>“I’ll spend the night again,” Pedro told her, his brown eyes full of fondness as he gave her an affectionate smile. “I might have to leave early. I have work tomorrow so I can’t stay as late as I did last time.”</p><p>“That’s okay,” Summer promised him, smiling back at him. “As long as you text me this time.”</p><p>“I will,” Pedro promised her in return. They stopped dancing in the middle of another slow pop ballad. The two of them were entirely set on leaving. Summer should’ve let Chris know but he seemed busy and she’d just text him from the car.</p><p>Summer linked her arm through Pedro’s as he began to lead them off the dance floor and out of the party. Her heart raced with excitement because she knew this was the beginning of something with Pedro. It felt like it was a bit more than what she ever thought could happen between them when they first met but the thought made Summer overcome with happiness and giddiness.</p><p>It had been such a long time since she felt this way about anyone and she couldn’t wait to explore whatever this was with him.</p><p>Age difference be damned.</p>
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